Pyramid of Fire
by Nina Windia
Summary: When Domino High is burned down, all evidence and even his friend's word points to Yugi. Can Yugi track down the the real culprit, before being labled a Pyromaniac and sent to a mental hospital?
1. Prologue

Author's note: Because every good story needs a prologue. Right? Right? Heh, well not really. But here's the prologue anyway, the real story starts next chapter, so please don't all run away because this one's so short!

Disclaimer- I don't own Yugioh, unfortunately.

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Prologue**

_Fire-_

_The power of the elements._

_All bow before it._

_Or are consumed by it's rising flames._

_Did you know that it's every kid's dream for his or her school to burn down?_

_Every kid that is, except me._

_Why?_

_Because they got their wish._

_I payed the price._

_I suffered._

_I hurt._

_This is my story._

_But where should I start…?_

_The beginning?_

_Yes._

_The beginning is a good place to start._

_Walk with me as I tell my story._

_Listen to my words._

_Feel my feelings._

_But watch out-_

_It's a bumpy ride. _


	2. Just a drill

Author's note: Okay, here's the first chapter. Thank you Shibby-One, tamashiipurizuma and justareviewer. Long chapter eh...? Uh... Well, I'm not that good at writing long chapters, but I can try. Next chapter that is. I've already write this one.

Pyramid of Fire 

**Chapter 1: Just a drill**

"MR Wheeler!"

"**MR Wheeler!"**

"Huh..." Joey muttered, rubbing his eyes with tiredness, having awoken from a deep sleep; He had not realized the teacher had been calling his name for quite some time now.

When he looked up, he was met with a purple-faced Mrs Watson. Poor Joey.

"Now, Mr Wheeler..." Mrs Watson began, strolling leisurely back to the black-board, "Seeing as you have _finally_ decided to grace us with your consciousness," She glared at him, "I'm sure you wouldn't mind coming up and solving the questions on the board." She said grinning evilly while holding up a piece of chalk.

Joey groaned, seeing the thirty algebraic equations on the board. He glanced at me, seeking help. I shook my head, an expression of sympathy on my face, as he dragged his feet along to the front of the classroom.

I did try though. But even flicking pencils at him wouldn't wake him.

The rest of the class burst out in laughter, but the teacher- who was a no-noise type of teacher glared at the offending pupils, (Me thankfully not being one of them) using her catch-phase:

"If your mouth is moving. Stop it."

Everyone was quickly quiet.

Nobody wanted to mess with Mrs Watson.

I started to space out, getting tired of Joey's cries of 'This is unfair!' and 'This is way to hard!' Even Mrs Watson's 'Do you need a detention!?' made him want to go to sleep.

In fact. That was exactly what I wanted to do at that point. The windows and doors were closed and an aura of drowsiness and haziness stalked the room; I could easily see why Joey had drifted off.

My eyes started to droop; my brain began to shut down, blocking out the noise of the room.

"Just a little nap..." I murmured, so quiet nobody would hear. And just as I felt myself drifting, a loud voice rang out. Very loudly.

"_Stop_"

I was so startled that I fell of my chair, landing with an 'umph'

The whole class stared at me, even Joey who was still on question six on the blackboard gave me a questioning glance.

"Heh... Heh..." I mumbled climbing back into the brown chair which sported, 'I luv RB' on the back. Just to let you know, I did not do that.

Mrs Watson walked over to me, bending over so she was eye level with me, "Mr Mouto," She said, "Is something the matter?"

"Uh..." I replied sheepishly looking round. Why hadn't they heard it too? "I'm fine miss, I just thought I... Heard something." She looked at me strangely but made no comment as she went back to the blackboard to torture Joey.

A black-haired boy in the back-row snickered quietly, "I just thought I heard something." He mimicked in a girly voice, which didn't sound like me at all. But the others snickered with him anyway.

I glared softly at the wall, but I ignored him.

After all, I had better things to think about. Like where that voice came from.

Nobody else had heard it.

Maybe I had gone mad.

I don't remember going mad...

"_It's all right Yugi, it's just me._" The voice said. But I wasn't afraid this time. How could I have been so stupid? It was Yami, I guess I had only just learnt about him at Duelist Kingdom, so I wasn't used to him yet.

"_Yami..." _I said in annoyance _"You scared me, you nearly blew our cover."_ I used the mind link of course. I would look like I was talking to myself otherwise. Then I'd probably be send to a mental hospital or something.

"_I'm sorry Yugi," _Yami said, _"I just didn't want you to join Joey up there." _

"_That's okay Yami." _I replied un-spacing-out for a second to see Joey tell the teacher he couldn't answer question nine because it wasn't funky enough. Yugi giggled in a non-girly way, _"He's going to get in trouble for that remark..." _He told Yami.

Yami sighed, _"That'll be another detention again then. Doesn't he have one almost every day?"_

I shrugged, not noticing I was doing it in the real world as well, _"Sometimes... I really think he likes them."_

"_How could anyone like copying half the dictionary out?" _Yami asked me.

I thought for a second, _"Don't forget lines, they make us write lines too." _

Yami snorted, _"How would you know Yugi? You've never had a detention before."_ He said in disbelief.

"_No," _I grinned, _"But Joey certainly has. He told me had to write 'I will not swear violently at the teacher' two hundred times! He was lucky he wasn't expelled for that!" _

"_Swore violently at the teacher?" _He asked, _"Why would Joey swear violently at a teacher?"_

"_Uh..." _Said Yugi a bit sheepishly, _"Well... You see... Tristen told him, the teacher, who is a lady... Uh...Likes him."_

"_Likes?"_ Yami sounded a bit scared.

"_Uh... Yeah. And you see... This teacher... Is about sixty." _I said sniggering.

"_Oh," _Replied Yami, _"I can see wh- Wait a second..."_

I blinked, _"Yami?"_

I didn't get a reply.

"_Yami?" _I asked again, slightly worried.

"_Yugi,"_ Yami said, Relief flooded my senses, I thought something might have happened to him, _"Yugi... Listen."_

'Listen?' I thought, coming back from the trance that I always seem to go into when I talked with Yami.

I understood why.

Ring 

**Ring**

**Ring**

I laughed, "Don't worry Yami, It's just the school bell, class is over."

Yami projected his image as he went into his ghost-like form. "Then where is the students, and the teacher for that matter?" he asked.

"Huh?" I said, "I guess they rushed out."

We stood in silence for a few moments, before Yami pointed out something, "Shouldn't it have _stopped _ringing by now?"

I had to admit, Yami was right, "...It's the fire bell." I said bluntly.

"Fire?" Yami asked, "We must hurry then Yugi, shall I take over?" He said trying to mask his panic.

"Nah," I said, "It's just a fire drill," I looked at his blank face, "A practice for a real fire."

"Oh," was all he said.

"Let's go." I said, scooping up my bag from the floor. Or rather I would have if my bag were there. I stuck my head into the desk, checking for it. "Hey!" I cried, "Someone's stolen my bag!"

I'm sure it was there earlier...

Yami shook his head, "That's not important now Yugi, you can find it later, lets go."

I nodded walking to the door, past the piece of chalk Joey was using, now discarded on the floor.

I had no worries.

It was just a fire drill.

There was never a real fire.

But then again...

Why did I get that ominous feeling...?

And where was that smoke coming from?


	3. Out of the Frying Pan

Author's notes: Thanks Shibby-one again for reviewing, and thank you for telling me about my mistakes, I've changed the 3rd person bit and the Mrs thing you thought was annoying. I just spelt it in capitals cause the computer said it was wrong otherwise. If you notice this chapter title, you know what the next chapter will be called then. Oh yeah, and the bit with the rest of the gang in this chapter is meant to be in 3rd person. Cause Yugi wasn't there an he don't know what they said then. That's enough rambling for now I think...

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Chapter 2:**

**Out of the Frying Pan...**

Come to think of it.

Where was all that smoke coming from?

I swung the classroom door open, almost stumbling back in disbelief. There wasn't a little bit of smoke like I suspected

There was a whole **lot **of smoke. I began to distrust my earlier judgment on this being 'just' a fire drill, indeed I began to trust Yami's idea of this being a real fire a lot more.

I coughed, inhaling more of the fumes, clamping a hand to my mouth. It wasn't as bad as it could have been for another student though, you see... I'm slightly...Smaller...Than the others; you know what I mean? Heat always rises, I sure am glad I paid attention to Mr Meeno's droning in science, unlike Joey and Tristen did.

I wonder if they've made it out yet? I hope they're all right...

I sure picked a good time for a spot of daydreaming...

X 

"Zack Teeq?" Miss Porter called, the register clamped nervously in her hands. Sweat pouring down her face. Nobody could be missing, they couldn't, for her sake they couldn't.

"Yes miss." The said boy replied.

Miss Porter almost sighed with relief. That was one person not missing, just twenty-three more to go now. "Ryou Bakura?"

"Yes miss." Ryou replied in his usual English accent.

Just twenty-two more to go now. "Tea Gardener?"

"Yes miss."

"Joey Wheeler?"

"Yes miss." Joey replied grinning, he loved a school cookout.

The teacher glared feebly at him, he couldn't be happy now, not in this situation. "Yugi Mouto?"

"Yugi Mouto?" She repeated, a bit louder this time.

They're was no reply.

"Yugi?" She said, her voice rising with panic.

The lined up class started glancing either way in the line, muttering to each other. There was no other explanation. Yugi was missing.

Miss porter walked down the side of the line, her face pale as a ghost. "Y-Yugi? Come on out... This isn't a joke you know!" She almost shouted in worry. But she knew he wasn't there, none could miss that hair of his.

Shakingly, she pulled out a walkie-talkie out of her pocket. "Student 36877..." She almost whispered into it, "Yugi Mouto...Is missing." But it seemed, even though her voice being silent, they heard her.

"No..." Tea whispered, huddled up with Joey, Tristen, and Ryou. "Missing, how can he be missing, he can't be!" She shouted almost in tears, looking round as if Yugi were to bound up right that moment smiling challenging Joey to duel like they always used to.

"There, there Tea." Ryou said sadly putting a hand on her back. "I'm sure he's fine.

"Yeah," Tristen said, a weak grin on his face, "I'm sure he's going to come out any minute now."

But he didn't.

Joey stared at the burning school building, watching the flames rise higher with every passing second as the firefighters tried desperately to put them out.

'Yug,' He thought 'Where are you?'

X 

I ran down the corridor, the exit had to be somewhere around here. But the confusion and panic was clouding my mind so badly I could not think, I could only run. I dimly heard Yami shouting at me, I didn't listen though, my mind felt like broken telly, fizzing away in the background.

I grabbed the handle to the first door I found rushing forward without even looking what was in front of me. My hastiness rewarded me with a flaming pillar landing right before my nose. I skidded to a stop, just in time.

I gasped for breath as I staggered back, watching the table underneath the pillar catch fire with it. The chairs next exploding in flames.

I finally had the brilliant idea of getting out of the room, so I ran back out the door I came from, the pillar blocking that path.

I searched for another route, as I ran further down the corridor, Yami still screaming at me for him to take over. I ignored him, as well as my better judgment.

I ran to the window, seeing the massing students in the courtyard below. I had an idea; I smashed it with my fist, completely forgetting I could have just opened it, and how much it would hurt. The glass shattered, shards falling to the floor.

"**HELP!" **I screamed as loud as my voice could go, "**HELP! I'M UP HERE!" **But nobody heard, they was just too much noise. For once I understood why teachers hated talking.

"_YUGI!_" Yami screamed at me, "_Listen to me!_" But I didn't, I was too busy trying to think how much it would hurt to jump onto the tarmac below. I finally decided against it. It didn't seem too smart to jump from three floors into a hard floor.

After all, they're had to be another way.

I looked to the left, panic ruling my mind as I began my search again. Questions started to stalk my mind, questions such as,

Would I ever get out of here?

Would I ever see my friends again?

My Grandpa?

God, I missed him.

I ran down more of the seemingly never-ending corridor, it was strange. It never seemed that long before when I walked up here to get to my math's class.

Why did I have to be in Math's? Couldn't I have been in English on the bottom floor?

My eyes widened in temporary delight as I spotted the staircase down to the second floor. I ran down as fast as I could, until I stopped. A barrier of flames blocked my path, my heart sunk.

I would never be able to get past that.

Unless I took the long way round...


	4. Into the Fire

Author's note: Thank you tamashiipurizuma, Shibby-One and citrus luver for reviewing. Well done, Yugi's bag is a clue in the story, you'll hear of it more in this chapter and in others later in the story.

**Chapter 3: Into the Fire**

Solomon Mouto- better known as Grandpa, was currently having lunch in the game shop. He glanced at his watch; absentmindedly thinking it was still a few hours before Yugi would come home. He sighed in relaxation, sinking back into the sofa, after a few moments, he decided to watch his favorite Television program- Peanut-butter belly dancing live. 

He grinned- reaching for the remote-controlled and nearly falling off the sofa. He grabbed it. "Aha!" He cried in success, holding it up in the air with triumph.

He pointed it at the TV, switching it on to channel three. To his dismay, Peanut-butter belly dancing live wasn't on; it had been canceled with the local news. Solomon growled, but decided to watch it. After all, what could be so important that they had to cancel his favorite program?

"Good afternoon," The news reporter said monotonously, "I'm Sophie Woods and I'm reporting live from Domino high." That caught his attention.

"A few minutes ago, a fire broke out inside the building, and is currently raging through it in alarming speed," Solomon jaw dropped, as he grabbed his coat off the rack, preparing to go to the burning school. "Most of the children have escaped but four are still said to be in the building. Mina Corana, Akira Garn, Paul Cliffe..."

Solomon rushed out the door, ignoring the Newsreader's words as she said the last name on the list.

"And Yugi Mouto."

X

My heart pounded, my head ached and I ran further into the nightmare. I'd taken the door to the side, since my way ahead was blocked; this way would take me though the Science department. By now, almost the whole of the school was blazing and I was running out of time. The firefighters would have no chance against the fire now- it was just too big.

I entered Lab thirteen as my clouded mind and memorized map of the school told me that I could get back to the main corridor on that floor if I went through all of the science department. Broken test tubes scattered the floor as I crunched through all the glass. Those tubes that had not been broken were sizzling in the heat being left by the students who had _not_ been daydreaming. I cursed myself, why didn't I just listen to the teacher, instead of going off to have a chat about fancying teachers with Yami. Now I was all alone- Well, Yami was here. But he wasn't much help just shouting "_Mind shuffle Yugi! Mind shuffle!_" At me when I was trying to concentrate.

I suppose I'm not quite acting like myself, but how can one when faced with peril and danger?

I ran through lab twelve, lab eleven, lab ten, lab nine and lab eight. But when I got to the seventh, something was different. There was someone else in with me- It was a Brown-haired girl, she looked younger than I did. Probably only joined the school this year, and she too was in this nightmare with me.

"Hey!" I shouted, desperate to get her attention. She stared at me with startling scared green eyes for about two seconds, before stuttering a few babbled words and running off. She never got very far- the roof collapsed on top of her. I didn't see any movement after that. My eyes widened in shock. I would never see her again, but I could grieve later but I had to get out first. I edged around the pile of rock, bricks and all the over things that had came from the roof and went forward to find the exit.

X

Tristen tapped his foot impatiently on the tarmac, while fiddling his fingers nervously. Joey stood with a frown on his face. Ryou looked sadly at the ground and Tea burst out crying again- Nobody offered her words of comfort this time, after all even they were not sure whether their friend would make it out. Nobody said anything; there was nothing to say anymore, only to wait. And cry- For Tea of course.

"A few minutes ago, firefighters attempted to enter the building to rescue the missing children," Sophie Woods- The news reporter Solomon was watching earlier said, "They managed to penetrate the school but have yet to return." She shifted through the papers on her clipboard. "Also-"A large crash interrupted her, a **very **large crash.

Screams echoed around the courtyard as the magnificent clock tower, that was once perched on to of the school came tumbling down, now a fiery mess. The students ran, but some never made it. The aftermath was expected, surprise, shock, and sadness. The children ran round, trying to find if their friends and family were not crushed. Some found them, others didn't.

Everyone was taken by surprise by this event, the reporter even swore out loud- that was going to ruin her career. But did anybody care at this point? Not really.

Several firemen ran out the building, despite the fact they were not completely firemen, since one was a woman. A teacher went to them to ask for status of the situation. "Sorry," One of the firemen said breathlessly, "We... We didn't find anyone. The fire's just too... big, you can barely see ... We can't go back in, it's just too dangerous, students or no."

The gang heard this, and to say they were shocked was an understatement. "What?!" shouted Tristen, "They can't do that! It's their job to rescue people! They can't just abandon the kids in there!" Joey nodded angrily.

"Oh Yugi!" Tea cried, tears streaming down her cheeks, "Now'll they will never rescue him, he'll die!" She sobbed, head sinking into her hands.

Ryou glared at her, "Tea, I thought it was you who believed in Yugi more than any of us." He said.

Tea stopped crying, wiping her tears away with her sleeve. "You... You're right. I... I'm being silly." She nodded, "We just gotta believe in Yugi, he'll make it. I just know he will."

"Yeah, that's the spirit!" Shouted Tristen , punching his fist in the air, "We gotta believe in him!"

"Hm... I'm not convinced," Joey said, "What if he's in there, choking to death. While we sit here and say 'Go Yugi!'"

"What do you mean?" Asked Ryou.

"I mean, it's no use standing here trying to cheer ourselves up, Yug' needs our help, and," Joey winked, "If I just let him suffer, then I'm no friend at all. I'll be danged if I let him die!" With that Joey set out at a sprint towards the flaming building.

"Joey!" Tea shouted, "No, don't do it! You'll kill yourself!"

He paid no heed to her; he had a friend to rescue.

X

I coughed, and I coughed and I coughed. My mind seemed to be split in two, and it didn't have anything to do with Yami.

'It's no good, give up.'

'No, keep going, you're almost there!'

Two voices battled it out in my head, each telling him one of my different points of view. But I couldn't give up now, not when I was so close.

I exited Lab one and followed the door that led back out to the main corridor, I sighed in relief, the flames that had blocked the corridor were where I left them. But I had just taken a detour round them.

I went down the stairs to the first floor, the metal steps clanging as I went. I was so close now; I could almost smell the fresh air. Well... Actually all I could smell was smoke, and it was getting worse, this was obviously where the fire had first started. The fool- why would someone do something like this, or maybe it was an accident.

I'm sounding a bit like the spirit of the ring aren't I? 'Fool' this 'fool' that.

I noticed something familiar, it was my bag.

But why was my bag down on the first floor? I had it on the third. I paid no heed to it however; I was almost to the exit. The only problem was it was _pretty _smokey round here. A bit too smokey if you know what I mean. Even being.... Low didn't help, really.

In fact there was so many fumes that I passed out.

Maybe I should have listened to Yami after all. Oh well.

X

Joey ran into the building ignoring his friend's calls telling him to come back. He had a job to do. And he was going to do it.

He immediately hit the smoke and nearly went back, but he couldn't abandon Yugi, so he ripped a piece of his school jacket off and pressed it against his mouth and nose. It helped a little, but it didn't help a lot.

"Yugi!" He called, though his voice was slightly muffled through the jacket. "Yug!" He didn't get a reply. He growled in frustration moving forward, he could barely see his hand in front of his face.

Using one hand to cover his mouth, one hand to guide himself and his memory of the school to guide himself Joey slowly managed to find his way all the time calling the name of his friend.

Just when he was about to reach the stairs his foot nudged with something, he stopped and kneeled down. Then he gasped, though he regretted that as he inhaled quite a bit of smoke, he clamped the cloth to his mouth again. The reason he had gasped...?

It was Yugi.

Joey shook him hoping for a response. He didn't get one; he leant down and rested his head against Yugi's chest looking for a heartbeat. He found one.

Joey carefully lifted Yugi onto his shoulders still with the cloth clamped on his face and strode from the building.

The gang gasped in amazement, he had found Yugi.

Ten minutes later, the whole building fell apart.


	5. Dreams

Author's notes: Wow! Six reviews, thanks guys. Okay, here goes, (Takes deep breath) Thank you Shibby-One, citrus luver, DitzyBlonde, Erckie, Masami, Mistress Of Fire and DS. Phew, I think that's everybody. Oh yeah, sorry about it being confusing DS, it did seem a bit confusing when I was writing it, and I'm supposed to know what's going on! Well, I do, I finally decided to make a story plan.

This chapter seems extremely pointless though (But it is important) I can't seem to write humor well when I am depressed, which is the reason I have not updated in AGES.

I am sorry.

**Pyramid of Fire:**

**Chapter 4, Dreams**

"Yugi!"

"Yugi!"

"**Yugi!"**

Ouch... My head hurt... My head really hurt. My head really, really hurt. My he- Well, you get the picture.

I wondered who was calling my name, I started to analyze the voice, It was definitely male, it also seemed to be in a strange accent. I tried to think about people with different accents that I knew, Ryou came to mind, but it didn't sound like his...

I finally decided to open my eyes and find out who it was, I groggily opened them, blinking away the mistiness. What I saw made me think I needed glasses.

It was Grandpa.

The only difference was that he was wearing a kilt and playing the bagpipes.

Since when was Grandpa scottish?

"Uh...Grandpa?" I asked, thinking that maybe he was teasing me.

"Yes, lassie?" He replied, now I really thought he had gone off the deep end. I certainly wasn't a 'lassie' as he put it. "C'mon lassie, if you 'dun hurry up, ye'll be late fer school. Yer friends are a waiting down stairs fer yer." And he skipped away with the bagpipe at his lips.

I blinked.

That was an odd experience.

Well, I'd best hurry up anyway, I didn't want to be late, it hadn't even crossed my mind that there was no school, not anymore.

I jumped out of my bed glancing quickly into the mirror, I don't have hairbrush, I don't need one, my hair is like this naturally. It'll only fall down if it's wet.

So, I walked over to my wardrobe- Wait, I backtracked, then, I screamed.

Then after I screamed, I screamed some more. My voice sounded... Girly. And my face... Urgh. There was only one explanation- I was a girl. My hair was no longer standing up, it looked like someone had pressed it through the mangle, My blonde bangs were cut off, (I forgot fringes were 'out' with girls at school) And rest of my hair had been dyed... Pink. I screamed again.

"Lassie?" A faint voice from downstairs called.

I backed away from the mirror with horror crashing against the wardrobe. I flung it open, I almost screamed again, it was full of pink miniskirts and pink tank-tops.

Suddenly, I smiled and lifted up the front my nightie and looked down.

Hey, I'm am a boy after all.

Well... I used to be. I heard footsteps, and before I could react the door opened. Joey stood there, wearing a leather spiked jacket and carrying a motorbike helmet.

"Hey my sexy-beast, you ready to g-"He saw me staring down my nightie. "Uh... Bad time, right?" I opened my mouth, then closed it, then I opened it again and made up an excuse.

"I... Am... checking my bra size!"

"Uh...Why?" Joey asked.

"Well... It changes everyday you know!" I said, I had no idea what I was talking about by the way, I don't really go into girl's bra sizes you know.

Joey raised an eyebrow "It does?" He shook his head, "Well, anyway, why were you screaming?"

"I..." Lie number six-hundred and twenty-three "...I was practicing for the screaming parade." How pathetic.

"Oh... Okay then." Joey replied, "You really scared Tea though, look." He lifted a large white and **extremely** fat cat off the ground.

"That...?" I pointed to the cat, "Is Tea?"

Joey looked puzzled, "You should know babe, she's your cat.

I laughed without humor, "Oh yeah..."

Joey laughed with me, thinking that I was teasing him, "Now that's the gal I know," He slipped his arm over mine. I started to get _really_ scared, after all, Joey was acting like I was his... Boyfriend, well... Girlfriend really, but it still scared me.

He started to slip his hand up my nightie, slowly working his way up. I realized what was happening and I screamed. Joey was shocked. "What's the matter with you today?" He asked, "You've been acting really weird, is something da matter? You know you can tell me _anything_." He purred, wrapping his arms around my waist.

I shivered, trying to break away, Joey opened his mouth in protest.

Then the whole scene froze.

The color drained from everything around me.

Joey was stuck with an annoyed expression on his face.

I suddenly realized I was transforming back to normal, my nightie was turning back into school uniform. The boys school uniform I might add.

Everything was in complete silence, I couldn't even hear the regular chirping from the nest in the tree outside. All noise seemed to be excluded from this strange desolate place I found myself in.

"Hello!?" I called out.

"**Hello?!**"

I was rewarded with nothingness.

Well... Not completely. I could faintly hear whispers, but where were they coming from? It sounded as almost... they were coming from the closet. But that was just stupid, the closet was full of junk, nobody could even fit in there.

Maybe it was the bogie-man?

Not likely.

I stepped towards the closet eagerly.

I grabbed it by the handle and then slowly eased it open. The whispers got louder, they weren't whispers now though, they were voices.

I closed my eyes, ready for all the boxes and old toys to fall on my head, like they always did when I opened the door. I stood in silence for a few moments with my eyes tightly shut. But when the idea that nothing was falling on me I cautiously opened them.

They're were no box's in here though, just a dark corridor stretching out endlessly. I thought carefully, should I continue?

In the end, I just shrugged and walked on anyway. I'm not scared of the dark, otherwise I would be scared of Yami! And that would be no good.

Come to think of it... Where is he?

Well... never mind, I'm sure he'll turn up later, he's probably napping in his soul room or something.

As I walked, the voices became clearer, though I still couldn't understand what they were saying. I walked further into the darkness, I wondered who the people talking were, it sounded as if there were two of them. But even more, I wondered why the heck were they in my closet.

I was near now, I could hear them quite clearly, but I couldn't see them yet. One of the voices sounded male while the other female.

Then,

I saw them, they were wearing long brown cloaks, I was annoyed by this, I couldn't see who they were. I stayed where I was though, I wanted to know what they were talking about, nosy, aren't I?

"That is excellent." The man said, obviously referring to what the woman had been saying before.

She nodded her hooded head. "Yes." She repeated monotonously.

The man raised his hand to his face, the robe falling down slightly to show pale skin, which could rival Ryou's.

He touched his mouth lightly, "Yes?" He asked with the air of a deeply offended person, "Yes? Is that your answer, one word?" He seemed rather angry.

The woman shook her head, though with no emotion. "I am sorry, master."

"You should be, now begone!" The woman bowed, then left, walking past me, though she never seemed to even notice me.

The man sat down in a black chair that seemed to appear from thin air, Or maybe it's just that the colour blended into the walls? "Perhaps..." He began to himself, "...She is losing her usefulness... I shall dispose of her." And he stood up and followed the route the woman took, he didn't seem to notice me either.

Usefulness?

Dispose?

The woman was obviously in danger. I would have followed them but at that moment, I felt a curious tugging sensation as the morning dragged me back to consciousness.

I opened my eyes for a second time, I stood up, I had to know.

I pulled the closet door open.

And the whole contents fell on top of me. I groaned looks like I _was_ dreaming.

A hand pulled the cardboard box off my head, Yami, in his translucent form shook his head, "Yugi... You really are silly."

I grinned with embarrassment.


	6. Yugi Gets Wet

Author's notes: geez, am I bad at updating or what? Sorry guys. My only excuse this time is that I could not be bothered. Thanks Shibby-One, citrus lover and Imconfused. Seems like I confused you all a bit eh? Yes, it was a dream, and a very freaky one at that.

Pyramid of Fire:

Chapter 5: Yugi gets wet

It had been a week since the incident, the incident being the 'school-cookout' as Joey had named it and the strange dream afterwards, that I had decided was that: Just a strange dream. Everything had, surprisingly, gone back to normal pretty quick. Except with the noticeable absence of school and twelve fellow students. Though I did not know any of them personally, unless you count the brief meeting the school building with the girl, who I know was called Mina Corana as 'knowing personally.'

Nothing unusual had happened since then, though Grandpa did catch me talking with Yami. He doesn't suspect anything though. Or at least, I don't think he does. I managed to persuade him that I was just discussing with myself, what I was going to do that day. Something that I know, he does himself.

I met up with the gang later and, after thanking Joey expressly for rescuing me, I told them about my funky dream. Though, I did leave out the bit with Joey being my boyfriend, I don't think I can take the embarrassment of his reaction to that. They agreed with me, saying that dreams can indeed be very strange and after a long telling of Tristen's dream, involving him on a beach with a couple of strippers we decided to go to the arcade for a bit of fun. Boy, at the moment, did I need it.

X

"Mr. Mason, I've checked every camera in the school grounds at least a hundred times. I can't find any clue on who, or what, caused the fire." The man: Yuichi Shimura, who had been hired as the lead detective for the case said.

"Drat," The head-teacher, Mr. Mason replied, bringing his fist down the computer desk Yuichi was working in anger. Slightly startling him. "If only the darn building hadn't collapsed, we wouldn't be in this mess. We could have the cameras inside the building to rely on!"

"Calm down," Sighed Yuichi, "My men are searching the wreckage. They're good. If there is any evidence out there about what caused this, they will find it."

Mr. Mason grunted in response, "They better…" He muttered, "I still have to find places at other local schools for the rest of the students, they can't stay at home forever." Yuichi hmm'd in reply, obviously busy staring at the computer screen, showing the students absences.

"For god's sake man!" Cried Mr. Mason in impatience, "You are totally useless, you've checked this thing a hundred times, what makes you think you'll find something this time!?" Yuichi smiled.

"What are you smiling for?!" Mr. Mason screamed, "I'm about to fire you from this case, and you _smile?! _Are you insane as well, as idiotic?!"

"No," Replied Yuichi, "I believe, that I have found our evidence." Mr. Mason raised an eyebrow; Yuichi turned to the screen and read the comment, left by Mrs. Watson. "In the middle of my class at about 1:50, the student, Yugi Motou left the class to go get a textbook from his locker, he didn't come back."

Mr. Mason looked intrigued, "This looks interesting…" He murmured.

"I believe we should investigate. Yes?"

"Yeah, Whatever."

X

"Er…" I muttered, placing my left food on the dance panel, I looked to the side, to see Tea dancing fluently. We were playing Dance Pro 7. I may be the duel king, but I gotta admit, I'm rubbish at dancing. And my performance was certainly showing that.

"Up… No, No! Left!" I mumbled, stumbling on the dance mat. Tea grinned, she knew this game was her's. I put my right foot on the down panel, my left on the right panel and then, I fell over.

I heard Joey and Tristen sniggering behind me. I groaned, feeling my back to make sure it hadn't snapped. 'Game Over' was displayed on my screen, as well as the proud score 'eight' Tea's screen said 'one-hundred-and forty-nine' Lucky her.

Joey and Tristen sniggered again before going off to annoy Ryou, who was playing 'whack the rabbits' in the corner.

Tea laughed, extending her hand to me. Blushing, I took it. Have I mentioned that I like Tea? I know she can be a bit annoying sometimes, and she gets a bit carried away when she's cheerleading, but she's a real nice girl. I like her a lot. I just wish I could tell her.

"Thanks…" I muttered with embarrassment. trying to look away from my pathetic score.

"Don't worry about it." She replied, "You didn't do…" She flicked her eyes over to the scoreboard, "Uh… Too bad… I guess. But you'll get better if you practice. You can always come to dance lessons whenever you want with me. You know?"

I shook my head, "Um… No thanks Tea. Dancing isn't really my cup of tea." She raised an eyebrow, I scratched my head nervously, "Sorry about the pun. I didn't mean it."

She grinned, "That's all right Yugi. Besides," She said, with a twinkle in her eye, "You can't be good at _everything_. People will start to get jealous."

"Ah!" I said jokingly, "Don't say that! Yami- Uh… The spirit of the millennium puzzle might just come out and prove that he is!" We both laughed.

"_I heard that Yugi."_

I just smiled sheepishly, and then, I realized my chance. This might have been the only time to tell her for quite a while. Why not do it when she's enjoying herself?

"Um… Tea?"

"Yeah?" She said.

"Um… Well… I don't know if you've… noticed before but… um… y'know… I really, sorta… Like…" I was interrupted, by a giant pink thing hugging me.

"Hi Yugi!" It giggled. The first thing that came to my mind was 'what the?' Who was this.

Tea looked… Angry, for some reason. I don't know why.

"Rebecca…" She growled, "What are you doing here?" Oh… So it was Rebecca. How did she get here? I was _so_ close! I can't believe she had to come in now!

Rebecca dressed in all pink and carrying her teddy smiled, "I just wanted to see my Yugi-Wugi."

Her Yugi-Wugi? Who does that girl think she is?

Tea seemed mad too. "Excuse us Yugi." She said and she grabbed Rebecca by one of her pigtails and dragged the girl out of the room. She was mad. I could tell that.

I wonder why that was?

X

"Why the heck did you pull a stunt like that?!" Tea screamed at her.

"Stunt?" Rebecca replied innocently. "I didn't pull any stunt. I was just expressing my true _love_ for Yugi."

"Okay," Said Tea, attempting to keep calm, "Let's get this straight. Yugi, is not yours. He's MINE! Got that blondie?! I was here FIRST!"

"Yeah well, Brownie, I was here SECOND! And it's finder's keepers, losers weepers. He's mine!"

"No, he's MINE!"

"Mine!

"Mine!"

"MINE!"

"Fine. We'll settle this some other way. Rebecca, I challenge you, to a water balloon fight! Do you except?"

"Yeah! I'll show you!" Rebecca thought for a moment, "Okay, here's the jig, if I win I get Yugi, if you win, you get Yugi. But your not gonna win so Yugi is gonna be mine!"

"Not likely!" Shouted Tea, "You stay here, I'll fill up the balloons I bought from the joke shop yesterday."

"What-EVER!" Screamed Rebecca, folding her arms and sticking out her tongue.

A few minutes later all the balloons were filled up and the battle was ready to begin, they were both hiding behind stuff outside, with a pile of water balloons beside them, Tea behind a bin and Rebecca, in a bin. Rebecca obviously had the advantage. "Right," Said Tea, "The first person to be hit three times, yes! Three times, will lose!"

"It's time to Duel! Uh… Water Balloon style!" Rebecca cried, opening the dustbin lid and hurling a balloon at Tea. She ducked just in time and threw one back. But Rebecca just closed the lid and let the balloon splat on that.

Tea growled, unleashing her full fury, she hurled a balloon and another straight after that. The first one hit the lid, but after that, Rebecca opened the lid to gloat, she was rewarded with a balloon in the face.

"Eaaakkkk!" She cried, shutting the lid immediately. Tea did her victory dance. But was hit herself by a balloon while doing it. 'Drat,' she thought, 'the score is still even, I'm gonna have to do better than this if I wanna beat her.'

So her thought up her plan, she rushed forward out from behind the bin towards Rebecca dodging the oncoming balloons. She grabbed the lid, ripped it off and stuffed a balloon inside.

"Ewwww!" The girl cried from inside the bin, "I'm all wet! I'll get you for this Tea!"

Tea just laughed sounding remarkably like Pegasus, while aiming the next water balloon. She couldn't believe it. She was going to win. Yugi would be hers. Rebecca had stuck her head out of the bin to get the water out of her hair. The scene was set for the final attack.

The balloon flew into the air and slowly, oh so slowly…

Onto Yugi.

X

I wondered where Tea and Rebecca had gone. I hoped she hadn't killed her, Tea can get real nasty when she's mad. I decided to go look for them, I went though the door they had, which went outside. The scene there shocked me. Tea was hurling a water balloon at Rebecca, who happened to be in a bin. Also, I happened to be standing right in front of her.

Oh dear…

SPLAT

"What do you two think your doing?" I asked, slightly annoyed.

"We're fighting for your love." Rebecca replied cooly. I was…more than surprised at this statement. Rebecca and Tea, Fighting for my love?

…

I hope Tea wins! Well, that was the thought that ran rampant in my mind. Hey, so what?

"So… Who won?" I asked.

"I was…" Blushed Tea, "But… You got in the way… Sorry."

I smiled, "Ah, nevermind."

"No she wasn't! I was gonna win!" Rebecca shouted. Tea rolled her eyes, and kicked the bin.

"Ahhhh!" Screamed Rebecca as she went rolling down the street in the bin.

Tea smirked. "Did I do good?"

"Yeah," I said, "You did real good. Now let's go home." So we did. And it was quite a relief.

X

Phew… That was a tiring day, I was glad to be going home, I had taken Tea to her house and now I was going back to mine. I lifted the doormat, taking the keys Grandpa had insisted in leaving there and putting them in the lock. I faintly heard voices inside. Did Grandpa have friends round?

I opened the door and I discovered the source of the noise, Grandpa did have people round, but I don't think they were friends. They were policemen. And they noticed my arrival, Grandpa looked upset. I wondered why, but I got a feeling I was gonna find out why, very soon.

"Yugi Motou I presume?" One of them asked.

"Uh yeah…" I replied what did they want with me?

"We're going to have to take you down the station for questioning Yugi." The officer said.

"What?" I asked, "What have I done?"

I didn't get a reply.


	7. An Interview With Yuichi

Author's notes: I am Soooooooo sorry. I've been such a bad girl; I haven't updated in months! And you guys asked to put up the next chapter soon… Thanks for reviewing though citrus luver, Shibby-One, #999, Masami Mistress Of Fire and blue-soljah.

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Chapter 6: An interview with Yuichi**

I sat on the cold hard bench swinging my legs.

_Backwards and forwards._

_Backwards and forwards._

_Round and round and round and round and round and-_

Why am I here? I have no frickin' idea. As you might have noticed, I am slightly annoyed, I'm dragged out of my house after a good, (yet wet) day with Tea to sit around for hours on a bench in the police station while Grandpa speaks with the some bloke accusing me of… something.

_-Round and round and round and round and round-_

I could faintly hear Grandpa conversing with some guy, (Who I suspect was an officer) Grandpa still sounded upset.

"-He would never-"

"-Speculation-"

"-Too nice for-"

I wonder what I had done, I can't remember committing any major crimes lately.

_-Round and round an-_

"_Yugi?" _What does Yami want?

"Yeah?" I replied cheerfully, putting my annoyance at being stuck here aside.

"_Why do you keep repeating 'round and round' over and over again?"_

"Uh," I didn't realise that he had been reading my thoughts again. How rude, I expressly told him I didn't want him doing that. "Just a bit bored, y'know?" I replied with a sickeningly cute smile.

"_Oh," _There was a pause in which I guess Yami thought about what to say next. _"What are we here for anyway?" _

"I honestly don't know, I think I've done something wrong, perhaps I've been reported for damage to property after Rebecca and Tea had that water balloon brawl. Everything did get quite wet." No response, "Hey, Yami?"

"_Yugi… Look in front of you."_

Grandpa and the man he was talking to were standing there, staring at me. It was then I realised I hadn't been using the mind link.

Whoops.

X

"So Mr Mouto, I hope you are willing to answer a few questions for me." I currently sitting in front of some tall bloke, it turns out this was the guy Grandpa was talking too earlier, and he's not an officer. He's a _Private Detective,_ sounds snazzy eh? Wonder what he wants with me.

"I don't suppose I have a choice." I said with my trademark smile.

He chuckled, "Not unless you want to stay here all night."

"Well then," I replied, "I think I'll have to answer your questions. Who actually are you though?" I knew he was a private detectivebut I didn't actually know who he is, what he wanted. Which is mostly what I wanted to find out.

"Ah, my apologies," He said sincerely, "How rude of me, My name is Yuichi Shimura, I'm a-"

"Private detective." I finished, this guy seemed all right, even likeable.

"Well, It seems you know that much. I suppose you read if off my brief case, hm?" He said, tapping the brief case at his feet. I just smiled at him in reply.

"I'm here investigating the fire at the school, you know, the one a week ago." Duh. Like there was any other.

"Yes, I remember." Not like I could forget.

"Well Mr Mouto, we've been trying long and hard to find the cause of the fire. So far however we've had no luck. But when we were looking through Mrs Watson's absence register it was marked down that just before the fire started you left the classroom to get textbook from your locker." Yuichi explained.

'Excuse me?' I didn't remember ever leaving the classroom, something fishy was going on here. "So…" I said, phrasing my words carefully, "You think I did it?"

"Uh," Yuichi replied awkwardly, not sure how to reply without offending me, "Well, I thought you might have seen something, somebody." I thought long and hard, my bag was left on the first floor where the fire started, without me having any memory of putting it there. It had to be a clue, but a clue to what? I should have brought it with me when I found it, it's probably in cinders now, buried by layer apon layer of rubble.

"I didn't see anything." I wasn't entirely sure whether to tell him about the bag thing.

"I see…" Said Yuichi, "By the way," He lifted up a dirty burnt object up from the floor. "Do you recognise this?"

I almost cried aloud in shock, "Yes, yes I do. It's my bag, but I thought it would have been destroyed by the fire." Why was my bag important? There had to be something…

"I believe the metal stairs to the second floor fell on top of it. So it was protected, well, mostly. We recovered it when we were looking for… bodies."

"But," I began speaking my thoughts aloud, "I'm sure you didn't bring me here just to give me my bag back." It made no sense.

"Ah," Said Yuichi solemnly, "It is not the bag itself, it's what's in the bag."

I thought for a moment, "What? Some textbooks, a notebook, my pencil case and uh… some other stuff."

"Other…Stuff?" Yuichi asked suspiciously, I knew that I'd have to tell him about it, otherwise he'd think I had matches or something in there.

"All right, all right I confess," Yuichi pricked up his ears at this, "I have a porno tape in there." I looked down in hope of looking disgusted with myself. To my surprise, Yuichi laughed.

"I know about the porno tape Mr Mouto, in fact I think that's where all the officers have gone." His laugh died down. "What I'm talking about is much more serious." And with that he pulled a small object out of my bag, it was then I realised why I had been brought here.

They thought I had done it.

For out of my bag he pulled out a lighter.

Yuichi suddenly yawned, raising his hand to cover his mouth in a gentlemanly way. "Well, it's getting quite late now isn't it?" No kidding, the clock read 12:32.

"I will ring you tomorrow, I need to speak to a few people, and we will discuss more then."

Yay.

"Goodnight Mr Mouto." And he walked out, leaving me alone, with my brain in top gear, thoughts spinning out of control. I don't think I'll get much sleep tonight. But first I have to concentrate on finding Grandpa and going home. I get a feeling I'll find him with those officers, and my porno tape.


	8. Déjà vu

Author's note: Thanks Shibby-One and citrus luver. Your confused eh citrus? Well, this is a mystery story, you'll just have to wait and find out who really did it. Thanks for reviewing.

_Pyramid of Fire_

_Chapter 7: Déjà vu_

Yuichi blinked wearily, rubbing his eyes with tiredness, he'd go to bed soon, as soon as he had finished this email to Mr Mason, the head teacher of Domino High, his client.

Mr Mason had told him to interrogate Yugi Mouto and give him a report on any possible success, and boy, did he have a lot to tell him.

R.E. Mouto investigation

_I have recently spoken with Yugi Mouto, though unfortunately not for long, I will ring him up later to get more details. He seems strange though, I found him talking to himself, acting as if someone else was there. He may have some mental issues; do you think you could send me his file from the school data banks? Unless they were destroyed too._

_Also Yugi recognises the bag with the lighter, he says it's his. I believe we've got a good suspect here, I will be watching him closely for the meantime. _

_It's too bad though; he seems like a pretty nice boy._

He sighed, clicking the send button at the top of the screen, sighing once again he rubbed his eyes, they becoming tired of the dull light the computer poured out, along with the headache bring humming noise. He really needed a new one. So why not, he had the money for it, he had everything he wanted, money, a nice house, a nice car, a nice job. Except someone to share it all with.

X

"Yugi?"

"Yugi!"

"**Yugi!"**

I awoke with a large headache, something I seem to be getting a lot lately. The voice I heard seemed familiar, though I wasn't sure why. The voice sounded… Scottish, weird.

I opened my eyes, and I remembered what was so familiar about the voice.

"Doesn't the saying go that if you have the same dream more than once that it'll come true?" I asked Grandpa, who at the moment was adorned with kilt and bagpipes.

"I dun' know whatcha talkin' bout, but yer must think yer still in the land o' nod."

This was getting incredibly strange, and the strangest thing was that I've never realised that I was dreaming while I was actually doing it. Something fishy was going on.

"C'mon now, yer'll be late for school, yer friends are a' waiting for yer downstairs."

"The school blew up, remember Grandpa? Kaboom. Well… Actually it collapsed. But…" Painful memories of that day ran through my mind, I felt slightly faint.

'Get a grip Yugi! It's over now, forget about it.' I scolded myself, I knew however that I would always remember that day, and with the school hounding me for answers, it would stay fresh in my mind.

Grandpa laughed, "Nice try, but the school is still there. Now, ge' ready or yer'll be late." He walked out, playing the Scottish national anthem on his bagpipes.

I stepped up to the mirror, expecting to see a girl's face looking back. To my surprise, I found nothing. The mirror showed the room, seemingly forgetting I was standing right in front of it. "Where is my reflection?" I questioned aloud, "What does this mean?"

As if to answer my question, misty words appeared on the mirror, though they obviously weren't, the words made no sense, I didn't know what half of them meant.

_"You owe unthoughtfulness, hostility and vileness exemption."_ I read, pure confusion in my voice, _"Leif opening serpentine termination yearningly. Oppressive unwarrantable redundant separation embraces licentious fiendishness."_ I shook my head, "No sense at all…"

"It doesn't have to make sense, it is a dream after all." Said someone with a strong English accent, I knew at once it was Ryou.

Turning around to face him I replied, "This seems far too real to be a dream; I have all my memories, in dreams I don't." Ryou shrugged. "Do you know why my reflection isn't showing up? When I asked it before, it just gave me some crazy answer which made absolutely no sense at all." I explained, hoping that this Ryou would know the answer.

"You shouldn't trust the mirrors, they're tricksters. They're whole purpose is a lie. People use them to see themselves, but they only can see what others do, their shell."

"Does this have anything to do with the whole 'what's inside counts' thing?"

"Hey," Said Ryou with a smile, "It's not as corny as the heart of the cards."

"Do you think the mirror is lying now?" I asked, eager to get back to the subject and find out what it really meant.

Ryou said nothing, but walked up to the mirror looking in it himself. I could see his reflection, nothing different about it, but by the look on his face I could tell he was seeing something different. Something terrible.

"What can you see?" I asked frantically, what was so wrong that Ryou had that look of terror on his face?

But my words were fading away, Ryou was fading away, everything faded away.

I had woken up, the cause; the phone ringing off its hook. I pulled at my hair in frustration, but also in relief, that dream was starting to go ugly. Although I was curious, I was also scared, Ryou really looked terrified. I'd never seem him so scared.

I jumped out of bed, and grabbed the phone, "Yes?" I asked angrily into it.

"Hello, this is Mr Shimura here, I-"

I'd forgotten he was to ring me back, "Bloody detective…" I muttered quietly, but not quietly enough apparently.

"Excuse me?" Yuichi asked, a bit surprised at my language. I was a bit surprised too, what had gotten into me?

"Oh, nothing. I was just talking to… someone else." I rolled my eyes, he'd see though that easily, but who cares. He's too nosy for his own business.

I hate being woken up.


	9. Kind Words

Author's notes: Yo guys, I'm REALLY sorry about not updating, I had thought I had given this story up. Now I realize how stupid and lazy I was being, but believe me, that's about to change.

So, to readers old and new… Enjoy the story!

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Chapter 8: Kind Words**

_R.E. Mouto investigation_

_To about time you found that suspect Yuichi! Do you realize how many parents have been blaming **me **for the building's collapse! It's ridiculous! The school governors are trying to dump me in this mess too, saying that I should have made the building more 'fire safe'! Can you believe that?_

_You'd better do something quick Yuichi, I'm not going to let this scandal ruin me. Just arrest the bloody boy already, or what about the kid that escaped the building at the last minute- Paul Cliffe- Go question him! _

_Just do something you useless man, I'm not paying you for nothing you know!_

Yuichi rolled his eyes, boy, was that man obnoxious or what… He was more interested in himself and his reputation than finding the culprit in this tragedy. Or the death of twelve children.

He stretched back on his chair and let out a yawn. He really should have known better than to have left his work to the evening- he was always shattered by then.

Suddenly, his computer beeped. Startled, he sat up – he had better not have got send one of those nasty computer viruses. It would have been typical of Mr Mason to send him one.

_Attachment- "Yugi mouto's bloody files"_

_Accept?_

Yuichi snorted, the man was rude and ignorant even in his file names. Well, at least it wasn't a virus.

He opened the file and stared intently at the glowing screen, all evidence of tiredness forgotten. For the moment anyway.

Yugi's file was nothing special, he was an average C-grade student, who was failing at maths and excelling in English. His teacher told of how he had written several excellent stories of an Egyptian Pharaoh who had saved the world.

Amused at his, Yuichi carried on browsing the file, but he didn't find anything else particularly significant.

Until this.

The detective had reached the school counsellor's report. Apparently, Yugi had been sent there several times after teachers had found him doing some rather odd things. These odd things included; spacing out a lot, giggling to himself for no reason and having chats with an invisible person. (Yuichi had witnessed Yugi's fondness of conversing with no-one himself).

After reading this, Yuichi decided that he had found a very good suspect indeed.

**X**

"Arghhhhhh! No stay away! Nooooooooooooo…."

I ducked behind Tristen and put my fingers in my ears. Honestly, why did Tea have to pick 'Night of the living zombie'? She knows I hate these kinds of films, they scare me!

…I'm not a wimp! Ryou looks pretty scared too, he's sitting next to me covering his face with a pillow.

… I wonder if he's trying to suffocate himself?

By the way, if your wondering what exactly the heck is going on... You see, my friends decided we should all get together sometime, since we haven't hung out properly since 'the incident'.

But… I really know that they're here to cheer me up, since I'm a suspect and all…

I appreciate it, but 'night of the living zombie' isn't exactly my idea of fun. Tea doesn't seem to realize this however, she's watching so intently that a band of strippers could pass in front of her and she wouldn't notice.

Mnmmmm… Strippers...

Oh, sorry, I went a bit off track there, but like I was saying-

"Yo Yug, Earth to Yugi," Joey called quietly, leaning over to talk to me. "You alright there?" He asks.

"Yeah, of course." I smiled, "I just... don't like scary movies much."

He grinned back at me, "I didn't think you did, I'm surprised you let Tea choose this one- You're too nice when it comes to her, you gotta learn to say 'no'" He laughed silently.

"Anyway Yug… Uhm… Do you think I could talk to you in another room? You know… If that's okay with you?"

I nodded, slightly bemused at what could be so important that Joey would miss 'Night of the living Zombie' for. I know it's one of his favourites, he told me he'd watched it twenty-four times when it came out on the cinema. Or was it twenty-five… I don't remember.

We stood and I headed upstairs, gesturing for Joy to follow me. No-one even noticed we left, Tea only mumbled "Down in front" As we passed her.

Ryou still had that pillow shoved in his face. I wonder why he hasn't suffocated yet?

Oh well.

I lead Joey into my room and shut the door behind us. "So… What was it you wanted to talk with me about?" I said, finally able to talk above a whisper.

"Well, Um…" He ran his hand through his hair, "When you said you were alright… I mean seriously, are you okay?"

Oh, so that's what this is about.

I walked the length of the room and perched on the end of my bed, "I'm just… a little worried, about the whole 'me being a suspect' thing… I'll be alright though…" I said, not entirely believing myself.

He sat next to me and pulled me into an awkward one-armed hug. "You know Yug, you can always talk to me, you know that, right? We're friends, yeah?"

I nodded, "Well… That private inspector guy rung me up this morning… the guy I told you about, the one who dragged me to the police station a couple of days ago, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember that. What did he want?"

"Well, after he woke me up, I was pretty mad at him. So basically… Now he thinks I'm crazy AND an angry school-burning lunatic," I sighed, "Now he wants to talk with me again on Tuesday. I know he thinks I set fire to the school! I just know it!" A sob escaped me and I turned away to wipe my eyes on my sleeve.

"Yug…"

I found myself being enveloped by Joey's arms. Not just a one-armed hug like earlier, but a real hug this time. "I'll… Always be here for you Yugi. It'll be alright, so… don't worry about it."

I sniffed and melted into Joey's embrace.

But for the first time I wondered, would things really be alright?


	10. Brothers

Author's notes- Thank you for reviewing **Masami Mistress Of Fire, **I thought everyone would have forgotten about this story by now! Thank you very much for reviewing. Here is the 9th chapter now.

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Chapter 9- Brothers**

The stairs creaked as I walked down them, trailing behind Joey. I yawned loudly, once everyone leaves I'm **definitely** going to bed, I don't think I've ever been so exhausted.

I smile as I see the scene in front of me, in the living room the film is finished and everyone has fallen asleep. Tristen is lying over Ryou and drooling on his lap, Tea meanwhile isn't even on the sofa, she's on the floor hugging the video case and making faint growling noises.

Geez, does she love that film or what?

Me and Joey get to work on poking everyone awake, ignoring their complaints and attempts to wave us away. Tristen got up pretty quick though when he realized he'd been lying on Ryou's lap. I just had to laugh at that, no matter how tired I was.

We said our goodbyes and everybody left, but Joey decided to hang back for a minute. "You gonna be alright now Yug'?" He asked me.

I nodded, "I'm okay now, thanks a lot."

He grinned and punched me playfully in the arm. "No prob. I'll catch you later then Yugi, my Dad will kill me if I don't get back soon. Literally."

I smiled sadly with a knowing look; his dad is a bit crazy, sometimes I feel really sorry for Joey. I waved, "Bye then!"

He waved back and set off to his apartment.

I sighed tiredly and collapsed back on the sofa, only to jump off it again quickly. "Ewww! It's wet!" I exclaim

I guess it wasn't just Ryou that got drooled on. Gross.

Come to think of it, the whole place was just generally a mess. I sigh, looks like more cleaning up for me.

'_Hey, Yami, can you do anything useful, like cleaning?' _I ask my Yami jokingly through the mind link.

His spirit form appeared in front of me, "Not unless you have a spare body somewhere, I'm certainly not cleaning all this up on my own, I'd be here all week. Did your friends throw a riot or something?"

"Well, they were supposed to be watching a film, but it looks like they really did have a riot instead…" I said, laughing. To my surprise I found Yami staring at me intently. "Um…Yami?" I asked.

He came close to me and brought his hand to my face, his unreal cold fingertips brushing against my cheek. "Yugi…Have you been crying? …Your eyes seem a little red…"

I didn't want to worry by telling Yami the truth, but I knew if I lied, he would only find out by digging into my memories. I've told him not to do that, and he usually respects my wishes, but if he's worried about me… Well, that's a different matter."

Sometimes, I feel that he's protecting me just a little too much.

Just a little.

I decided I'd best tell the truth, "I…Um… I was talking with Joey earlier-"

"Did he say something to upset you?" Yami interrupted sharply.

"No! Nothing like that…" Yami looked relieved, "I was just talking to him about the police investigation, I'm… a bit worried about it."

My other half gave me a sad mournful look, "I thought that's what it might have been."

I stared at him, startled, "What?" I asked.

"The mind link Yugi, remember it? I can sense what you are feeling like you can with me."

"Oh, right… Of course."

"You know Yugi…" Yami said hesitantly, "You can always talk to me if you ever need too. We do share the same mind…"

"Thanks Yami, I know." I said picking up loose piece of popcorn from the ground, "But I'm okay now."

Suddenly, I found Yami with his arms wrapped around my waist, "Don't you worry about anything little brother, I won't ever let anyone hurt you."

"Little brother?" I asked, confused by both his words and his actions. After all, since when did Yami hug people?

He moved his head to rest it on my shoulder, "That's right… You're like a little brother to me Yugi. I will always love and protect you."

I smiled, Yami really had started warming up to people in these last couple of months since we returned from duelist kingdom, I know a lot more about him now, understand him a bit better. And although I couldn't' actually feel Yami holding me, it meant exactly the same thing.

"Let's go to bed then, big brother."

X

Joey stomped tiredly up the stairs to his apartment, the clanking of his footfalls echoing all around and no doubt annoying the neighbours. He finally reached his floor and dug around in his deep pockets for keys, sifting through chewing gum, money and many other things he didn't want or need at that precise moment.

"Damn keys…" He muttered in an annoyed tone.

All at once, the door to his apartment swung open and almost knocked Joey off his feet. 'Wha' the hell!'

A messy unshaven man looked down at him angrily, "Where the fuck do you think you've been brat? it's past midnight!"

Joey's eyes narrowed, "Like you care Dad, I expect you've only come out to do some more late-night boozing." He scoffed.

His dad glared and pushed Joey aside, striding down the metal stairs, anger in his steps.

"Heh, looks like I was right," Called Joey after him and his Dad gave him the finger in reply and a look that said 'You'll regret this.'

His son walked into the apartment and slammed the door loudly, causing the neighbour next door to bang on the wall, "Will you please just shut the hell up!" Joey ignored this and walked over to the window where he now saw his Dad walking along the path on the way to the pub. He continued to glare, his heart aching for the loss of his father who didn't seem to care any more.

He heard several drunken shouts from down below and Joey closed the blinds, grumbling his complaint for living in such a sleezy run-down part of town.

He sighed heavily and sat down on his sofa, turning on the tv to get his mind onto better things.

'_Hello and welcome to news night! I'm Sophie Woods and here is tonight's headlines-'_

Joey groaned, news night had to be the most boring program on the planet, where was all the action-adventure films, the comedies? The news was reality, and Joey had far too much of that already. He reached for the remote controller, but it slipped out of his hand and fell down into the deepdepths ofthe sofa.

'_Today the 'Tokyo Devils' continued their rampage throughout the city. The 'Tokyo Devils' in question being the most infamous biker gang in the whole of Japan. The wave of violence they have been causing is continued to spread when they provoked a neighbouring gang-'_

"Damn, where's that remote?" He mumbled, sitting up and digging his hand into the back of the sofa.

'_-Were injured and several killed. It is expected the 'Tokyo Devils' will cause even more chaos in the future. In other news, the investigation into Domino city's school fire-'_

Joey finally found the remote right down the back and pulled it out, changing it channel 3, where there were two giant monsters tackling each other. Suddenly, the words of the presenter on the other channel reached his head, "Oh!" He said and changed the channel back.

'_-May know, several weeks ago in Domino High School, a fire erupted from the bottom floor, causing the death of twelve students and the injury of many more. Tonight, we have a special guest, Mr Yuichi Shimura, who is a detective investigating the incident. Thank you for coming in tonight Mr Shimura."_

'_That's quite alright,'_ Said the detective, taking a seat next to the presenter.

'_So, tell us Mr Shimura, do you have any ideas on what could have caused such a dreadful tragedy?' _Said Sophie Woods.

'_Well, we're still in the process of investigation, but… What we have determined so far, is that the fire was not an accident.'_

'_You mean you think a **student **set fire to the building?' _Said the presenter in obvious mock amazement.

'_We believe so. We have a couple of suspects… but they are all minors and cannot be mentioned in public.'_

"Wait one damn minute…" Thought Joey aloud, "This guy must the dude who questioned Yug', so one of these suspects is probably Yugi!'

'_Have you found any conclusive evidence yet?'_ Asked Sophie Woods.

'_We have some evidence, but it's not enough to press charges on any one yet, we're still not 100 percent sure who the culprit is… But earlier today, we received an email from someone who claims to know who did it. I'm meeting up with this witness tomorrow.'_

'_Well, hopefully then you'll find who committed this awful crime. We wish you good luck in finding the culprit, thank you for coming in tonight Mr Shimura.'_

'_It was my pleasure.'_

Joey switched off the television, 'Why do things have to be so damn complicated…?' He thought, 'I really hope Yugi doesn't' get even more drawn into this. That guy must be a crap detective if he thinks Yugi would do it, he would never do anything like that. Still… I wonder who did…? Argh… My brain hurts, I'm going to bed.'

And so he did, although it was a restless sleep plagued by nightmares with fear for his friend.

X

Yuichi Shimura however, had never slept better. Because he knew that tomorrow maybe, just maybe, he would solve this mystery for good.

Perhaps this witness would be the final missing piece of the puzzle.

Maybe.


	11. Decision

Author's notes- I'm SO sorry to leave you guys hanging for ages! I haven't updated in quite a while now, I've been incredibly unmotivated for this story (again) but I'm back! And I'm more motivated than ever! Please enjoy this chapter!

Thank you to **Ashka-Chan, Nina, Masami Mistress of Fire, Crystal Ice614, Firephonixie **and** Balaa **for all my lovely reviews!

* * *

**Pyramid of Fire**

**Chapter 10- Decision**

Private detective Yuichi Shimura rose early that morning, the indescribable excitement he always felt when a case was coming to a close flowing through his veins. This rush, this happiness was what he lived for. The extraordinary emotion when a mystery was figured out by him had to be the best feeling in the world.

He got the feeling that that day would be today.

He hurried on his clothes; an un-tucked white shirt and black trousers, and brushed down his unruly tawny brown hair that framed his somewhat handsome features with haste. He drank his morning coffee quicker than normal before rushing out; almost jogging to the office that was conveniently only two streets away. He pushed open the jangling door to his detective agency that was run from the second floor of the building (For the bottom floor was a bakery).

He greeted all his assistants, "Good morning team!" He called cheerfully to them all, giving a big smile.

They all grinned back and nodded their heads as a bouncy blonde young woman rushed up to him excitedly, "We're gonna solve the case today, right boss?"

"I sure hope so Selene, that boy sounded serious when he asked to talk to use, he said it was very important."

"Great!" exclaimed Selene, head bobbing with anticipation.

"I have to talk with Yugi Mouto further also."

"He's the starfish head, right? Or was that the other one…?"

Yuichi laughed at Selene's wording, "Yes, he's the starfish head. I thought you would have gathered that by now though. You need to listen more and work harder if you truly want to be my apprentice." He said, suddenly serious.

Selene threw her hand into a bumbling kind of salute, "Aye aye captain!"

"Okay then…" He said in reply, beginning to wonder if she was smoking some kind of drugs. "I'm going to do some paperwork now, before I go to see the boy, so you keep on with that filing."

"Right chief!"

x

That morning, I received a phone call from Joey. I had reached to my alarm clock automatically, believing the noise to be coming from it, and then hastily, I had thrown myself out of bed to answer the phone, which was where I had figured out the noise was coming from. I ran out onto the landing, almost reaching it, fingers stretching for the grasp of power… When Grandpa picked it up first.

God darn it.

I sighed and trudged back to my faithful bed, ready for another nice look sleep, "Yugi!" Grandpa called to me, from the endless distance of the kitchen, "It's for you, so pick it up!"

So I rushed back to the phone again and found the nervous voice of Joey in my ear. "Yo Yugi, It's me- Joey."

"Oh hi Joey, what's up?" I rubbed my eyes tiredly, slapping my face in an attempt to wake myself slightly.

"Uh… Well, did you see the news last night?"

"No, sorry. I went to bed soon after you left last night, I was really tired. Was there anything important on it?"

"Oh… Well, they were talking about the investigation into the fire at school… I think that detective dude you met was on there."

Surprised, I said nothing, letting the awkward silence will the line for a few moments before replying, "Really?" I said rather lamely.

"Um, yeah."

"…What did they say then?"

"They said-" Joey paused, "They said they had a found a witness and they were going to talk to him today."

Suddenly, a realization flowed over me, "Wait, the detective said I had to talk to him this evening! It's Saturday, right?"

"Yeah."

"Oh…Great. I hope those dumbo's have figured out that I DIDN'T do it now."

Joey laughed, despite the seriousness of the situation. "Dumbo's?"

"Uh…"

"Well, I hope so too buddy. I really dun' know how they got it into their thick skulls that you did it. It's almost as though… Someone framed you."

When these words passed through my friend's lips, the sudden thought burst into my mind.

Maybe I had been framed.

But who would do such a thing? Well, that's a stupid question actually; I've made hundreds of enemies since I found the millennium puzzle, Pegasus for instance. He may have disappeared, but maybe he's back for revenge. Or maybe one of the people Yami punished with his shadow powers, there are countless people who would love to put my head on a platter.

But who had done it?

x

To Yuichi's surprise the witness who met him at that small secluded café was a bit… larger than he expected. He towered over Yuichi and had fat—or maybe even muscle—that matched it. Yuichi felt slightly intimidated around him, but swallowed his fear, knowing the case depended on this huge boy.

"So…" Yuichi said nervously after drinking a long draught of tea, "Could I have your name please?" Under the table, he opened his notebook, pen paused at the ready.

"It's Ushio." Said the boy in a rather gruff voice.

"Ushio who?"

"None of your business." He said this sharply, and Yuichi swallowed hard, wondering what he had gotten himself into. But calmly and without a shaking hand he wrote 'Ushio ???' in his trusty notebook, thinking only of the case. He knew it was not worth trying to pull the information from him, he didn't want to lose this important information he had been promised.

"Do you attend Domino high school?"

The boy laughed. "Used to! Before the brat burned it.

Detective Yuichi leaned in hard. "Brat?"

"Yugi Mouto. A trouble maker, I used to be hall monitor you know, he caused me tons of grief. Never thought he'd pull a stunt like this though."

The investigator wrote vigorously in his notepad, he looked up, "I checked the school database; I thought Yugi was supposed to be a good kid?"

"That's what he wants you to believe," Said Ushio angrily, "He acts like a sweet little kid and does his goody-goody act to the teachers, but if you turn around for one second then BAM! He's got you in his web!"

Yuichi raised an eyebrow at this new revelation then proceeded to write it all down. "Ushio, are you saying you **saw **Mr Mouto start the fire?"

"Pretty much." Said Ushio.

"Pretty much?"

"Well, I suppose I didn't actually **see** him start the first, but what I saw really proves him guilty."

"What did you see?"

"Well, I'd only come back to school about a week ago, I was off for… It's none of your bees wax actually." Yuichi made note to investigate the cause of his absence further, "Anyway, I saw stupid Mouto on the bottom floor when we were supposed to be in lessons. This was right before the fire bell went off."

"Hang on- How come you weren't in lessons?"

"Bunking. Who cares?" Ushio shrugged nonchalantly.

"Oh… Please carry on with your story."

"So like, he had this weird smirk on his face and had a lighter in his hand. At first I was like- Whoah! The brat's started smoking! I would have congratulated him if I didn't hate his scrawny ass." Yuichi wrote at lightning speed, copying down all the valuable information that was like gold to him.

"Did you talk to him?" He asked.

"Uh… No. I'm kind of avoiding him at the moment. He's pure evil, you go near him and he'll put a curse on you."

"A curse?" The detective laughed inwardly, thinking his witness might be over exaggerating this a bit.

"I'm serious, that's what he did to me. He's the son of the devil or somethin'."

"…Right," Yuichi put this down to the fact that Ushio didn't' seem to like Yugi rather than him actually being the son of the devil. "Please continue."

"That's all there really is too it, I just walked past and saw him by the stairs with his lighter and I carried on. That's it."

Yuichi started in surprise, remembering that was where Yugi's bag was found. 'His word, the bag's location and Yugi's absence from class all point towards Mr Mouto being guilty. I think I may well have found our culprit.' Trying to contain his happiness, he smiled moderately at his witness, "Well thank you Ushio, your input has most definitely been helpful for the investigation. Could you please just write down your details for us here? We need them just in case we need more information."

Ushio looked hesitant for a moment, then wrote down his address and telephone number on Yuichi's notepad, handing it back to him after. "Is Mouto gonna get banged up now?"

"..I'm afraid I don't know yet, we're not supposed to mention such things to the public before the decision is properly made yet anyway."

"Tight ass."

Yuichi gulped down any rude retorts he might have been thinking and smiled politely once again at his witness, the thought of the case once again the only thing in his mind, "Nice meeting you Ushio, I'll contact you in the future if I need anything else."

"Yeah, Whatever."

x

The door to the detective agency office rattled as Yuichi excitedly opened it, grinning, just as it had this morning. Though now he seemed even more excited than ever. "How'd it go?" Asked Selene, bouncing up from the kitchen with a spilling cup of coffee in her hand.

"Perfectly my dear," He smiled at his apprentice from ear to ear before turning to his eager staff, positioned to react to his every word, "Now, would someone please call the police? We have a culprit to arrest."

* * *

Psssst, if you didn't know, Ushio is the bully from the original manga who caused Yugi and Joey to become friends. Sorry to leave you all on such a cliff hanger- I'm evil. 


	12. Spider Eyes

A/N- IMPORTANT NOTICE- I'm going to be going through some of my old chapters and changing them a bit soon. I've just realized I've screwed up my tenses really badly, sometimes it's in present, others it's in past. Ugh… What a mess I've made. I'm sticking to present tense now, and if I accidentally switch back, you all have permission to flame me into oblivion… But if you think its better in past tense and that this sucks let me know and I'll change it back. Anyway, just let me know please.

Oh, and thank you to **Crystal Ice614**, **I collect Bananas**, **Ashka-Chan**, **Tomboy 601** and **Masami Mistress of Fire**. I love you guys. :)

_Pyramid of Fire_

_Chapter 11- Spider Eyes_

An annoying clacking sound fills the house as I wrestle with the infamous Rubik's cube. It seems like it's being lying in my house for eons, but at the same time neither Grandpa nor myself have ever completed it. Many times have I tried, but all I ever get is a headache and hurting fingers- I don't understand at all, how could I complete the millennium puzzle, which no one has ever done before, and yet fail at a Rubik's cube? I rub my head in frustration, I'm not getting anywhere with this stupid thing, I can do one side, but the others just won't go! 'T_ry turning the top part Yugi.' _Suggests Yami, as he's been doing for the past hour. I turn the top of the cube as he had said and groan loudly, it had only messed it up even more! _'This puzzle is truly amazing; I must meet its creator sometime. Any idea where he lives?' _

"I don't know Yami…" I say in an annoyed tone, trying to will the Rubik's cube to work by glaring at it.

My Grandpa looks at me across the table, eyebrow raised, and I feel my cheeks redden as I realize I've spoken out loud. "I'm not sure those things are good for your mental health Yugi." He says.

I mumble something a bit like "Uh…Yeah…" and direct my attention back to the cube, still embarrassed.

'_That was too close; you have to remember to speak to me in your head when others are around.' _Yami tells me in a lightly scolding tone.

'_I know Yami… I just kind of forgot.' _I turn the Rubik's cube in my hands, no longer caring if the pieces matched.

'_Well… Try not to forget, you don't' want everyone to think you're crazy or something, especially since you're a suspect for the fire.' _

'_Yeah, they would have an even better reason to think I had done it then! …I'm just not used to thinking something and expecting someone to hear it, even after you've been with me all this time. It's kind of weird knowing someone can read all my thoughts at a whim as well…'_

'_Believe me when I say this Yugi, sometimes I'd rather not see your thoughts either. To think that your friends are under the impression you are an innocent little kid is very amusing! You never did get your porno tape back from those policemen, did you?'_

'_You're embarrassing me!'_

'_That was the whole idea' _I get the feeling that Yami is grinning now, even though I can't see him, why do our discussions always have to turn naughty all of the time? Sometimes I think Yami is dirtier than he lets on, too bad he shields most of his thoughts from me, it'd be interesting to know what he thinks about… I look down to my Rubik's cube that my thoughts had been neglecting and my eyes go wide- it's complete, all the colours are on the right sides.

"Oh!" I cry.

**Ding dong! **Our stereotypical doorbell sounds, its shrill tune bouncing in my eardrums. 'Who could that be?' I wonder, momentarily out of my joy for the completed cube.

"I'll get it," Grandpa says to me, rising from his chair slowly, "I'm expecting a package."My curiosity drains away, he did say he'd bought some DVD's of a favourite TV program of his a week or so ago, I had to help him by showing how you bid on Ebay.

My attention returns to the glorious 3D square I hold in my hands and wonderment gleams in my eyes, "Ye---------es!" I shout, punching my fist high into the air above me. In my mind I hear Yami chuckle, but I pay him no heed. I jump to my feet and perform my famous 'Egyptian boogie' which I hear my puzzle dwelling pal laugh even more over. I got so caught up in my amazing dance routine I almost didn't hear Grandpa calling my name. "Yugi!" I hear him shout from the shop, "Come here a moment!" His voice sounds a little odd, like it's strained, and in the back of my mind I'm hoping it's not another one of those hired goons from Kaiba, who's still angry at me because he sucks at card games. He could at least have the decency to kidnap my Grandpa himself, instead of getting some big guy with a generic scary face to do it. I put my Rubik's cube down on the table for a good boogie session later and head into the shop, hoping the hired goon isn't _too _scary looking.

Well, Kaiba's hired goons really do seem to have gone down a grade. This guy isn't scary looking at all, I head towards my Grandpa, trying to get a better look at the guy who's standing with him. Then I realize- it's the detective Yushi… Yigi… Yuichi. I let a confused look slide onto my face as I approach him, "I thought you weren't coming until later detective?" I'd forgotten about it temporarily with the excitement of the Rubik's cube, but he did say what seems like ages ago on the phone that he'd question me more today. I then notice something behind the detective and I peek round the corner of the door to see what it is. Or rather, what they are. Standing just outside is two police officers, both dressed in their uniforms and solemn expressions. "Uhm… What's going on?" I say, voicing my concern.

One of the men behind Yuichi, an older man with a moustache, steps forward into the shop. I can only watch in horror as he pulls out a pair of handcuffs and slaps them around my suddenly numb feeling wrists. "Yugi Motou, you are under arrest for the purposeful destruction of Domino High, you have the right to remain silent, anything you do say may and will be used against you." The man says to my shocked self, which has currently frozen to the spot.

"But-" I say, panicking, finding at least that my voice hasn't frozen with my body, " – I didn't do anything! You… You can't arrest me! Grandpa, help me!"

Grandpa looks at me with a great sadness in his eyes and for once I remember just how old is, "There's nothing I can do Yugi…" He says softly and incredibly sadly.

Yuichi turns to me and looks me in the eye, "I'm sorry." He says, though I really doubt he is. I feel like I could brake out into tears at any moment, I'm afraid to open my mouth because I know I won't be able to stop crying then, and it feels like there's a golf ball stuck in my throat.

"We're going to take you down the station now," says the other officer, grabbing hold of my arm rather roughly. Grandpa starts forward, but the policeman with the moustache stops him, "Sorry sir," He says, "But your grandson must come alone with us."

I don't think I've ever seen Grandpa looking so sad, not since Dad's funeral at least, usually he's so upbeat, but now he looks on the verge of tears. I don't know what to say, I'm the one being arrested, but I can't help but think about him, not me. "How long are you going to take him in for?" Grandpa asks at last, speaking quietly to the officer.

"As long as it takes." Replies Yuichi.

"Very well," Says Grandpa, lowering his head a little, "Could I visit him soon at least?"

Yuichi contemplates this, "Perhaps tomorrow… Ring the station then and we'll tell you if you can come or not."

My somewhat melted body freezes again at the detective's words, "You mean I'm going to stay at the station overnight? In a cell?"

"And you're gonna be there for a long, long time for you did you, punk." Says the policeman who'd grabbed my arm, snickering slightly.

I feel my face go pale at his words, I'm starting to realize what an awful situation I'm in, I'm going to be thrown in prison and that mean officer is probably going to eat the key so I can never get out. The happiness from the Rubik's cube is now long gone. _'Yugi, do you want me to get rid of these guys?' _Asks Yami, who's been lying dormant for the last few minutes, though I've felt his growing anger permeating into my thoughts and I know _exactly _what 'get rid of' means in Yami-language.

'_I don't want to get in trouble with the police,' _I say to him, remembering to keep my words in my head, _'Let's just see what happens for now, please. I really, really don't like the idea of sleeping in a cell, but if you send these guys to the Shadow Realm, people will think you killed them and we'll be on Japan's most wanted list! Hopefully if we go with these guys they'll figure out I didn't burn the school and let us go, they're sure to find something soon that shows I didn't do it!'_

I can feel Yami's uneasiness about the situation, but he only says '_Okay then… I hope you're right about this little one.'_

I say my goodbyes to my grandfather and hug him (though this is rather difficult considering that I'm wearing handcuffs) and the officers swiftly lead me to their car. I open one of the back doors and climb inside, turning to the window to wave to Grandpa.

Well, I would if he was there. Eyebrows arching with sadness I strap my seatbelt on, resting my aching head against the cool glass window, wondering why my Grandpa had left so swiftly. Is he ashamed of me? The thought saddens me even more deeply, and I stop thinking about it, not wanting to send myself into a deeper despair. I see Yuichi glance at me in the rear-view mirror and I feel a sudden loathing for him. This is the man who claims I started the fire and is going to lock me up because of it, he'll probably take me to court as well…I don't even want to think about that though, just the thought of going on trial is scary, I'm still hoping the real culprit will be found soon, not that I really know why these guys are arresting me anyway, did they find even more evidence against me or something? Someone really must have it in for me… I think for once I'm not going to mind Yami sending someone to the Shadow Realm.

…I'm thinking about asking one of these guys why I'm here, yeah, I'll just say 'Hey, tough guy, why the hell are you locking me up for, I didn't do anything, you dumbasses!' …But what I think and what I actually do are quite different. I'm too shy to say something like that really, I feel nervous just talking to people in the street, let alone police officers! Still, that Shimura guy isn't so scary, and I've talked to him a few times, so he's not a stranger. He's sitting in the front seat at the minute, dressed in all his 'modern' fashions, with a jumper and one of those scarves lots of guys seem to be wearing a lot lately, even though it's not that cold. His outfit reminds me a little of something Bakura would wear… Wait a minute; I'm supposed to hate this guy. Hate, hate, hate, growl! I think I will ask him, yeah, I will, with a hint of arrogance in my voice that lets him know I consider him dirt! "Detective," I say in my manliest voice, and he turns around to look at me, I prepare myself, remember Yugi, hate, hate, hate! "Um… W-Why are you arresting me…? I didn't burn um anything."

Oh god dammit.

"We'll discuss that during the interrogation." Says Yuichi, moving back to face the front, as I'm left beating myself up on how pathetic I am at standing up to people.

xxx

The police station is a busy place, with secretaries rustling papers and phones ringing off their hooks. I guess there must just be a lot of crooks around at the moment; either that or I'm not the only person to be blamed for _something they didn't do._

I'm led into the main foyer, one of the officers gripping me by the shoulder painfully. We walk (Or rather, I'm dragged) over to a pretty looking secretary with green eyes, she looks kind of flustered at the moment though, with a phone shoved to her ear by her shoulder and a stack of papers balanced haphazardly in her hands. We wait until she's finished her phone call then approach her. Yuichi greets the secretary with a flash of a card- which I guess tells her he's a detective- and says "Private detective Shimura and Officers Middleton and Yazawa, here with Yugi Motou."

The secretary glances at me tiredly with rather glazed green eyes, but suddenly appears to be jolted awake by something. "The Domino High case?" She asks.

Yuichi nods, "We're taking him in for thorough interrogation." The secretary looks at me again, and an expression of pure disgust and anger grows on her face. "Good luck then," She says to the detective, still staring at me with enraged eyes, some of that expression seeping into her voice.

I cast my eyes to the floor, not wanting to look at those pools of hate any more, and I realise I'm being treated as a murderer, after all, the fire did kill twelve people… I didn't really consider this before, I need to convince these guys I didn't do it! I hear a ruffling of papers in front of me and the secretary's voice sounds again. "Head down to the interrogation room then, they're waiting for you to arrive."

I'm glad when we leave the secretary behind, though I feel her eyes on my back as I walk away, no doubt willing me to burst into flames.

This whole 'interrogation room' thing worries me a little however… When I was questioned before Yuichi just talked to me, is this going to be like in one of those movies where the scary guys in a dark room shine a light under your face and play good cop, bad cop? We walk past what looks like the police staff room and I hear the two officers with us start to whisper to one another. "I didn't know she had come back to work today…"

"I'm surprised too, she got over her daughter's death really quickly, but I guess she's just a workaholic at heart…"

"She looks flustered though, I don't think she should have come back so quickly, it's not good for her health."

"Well, we both know whose fault it is she's like that…" The officer glances at me with a look akin to that of the secretary's and continues his discussion with the other man, lowering their voices so I can't hear them anymore. I feel somewhat curious, but his look gives me a sick feeling in my stomach and I know I'd only get a smack round the head if I asked them what they were talking about.

We continue down the corridor right to the end, there's a metal door there, and if this were a cartoon you'd see me gulp nervously. As we reach the door, the detective bids the officers farewell and it's safe to say I won't miss them, especially Meany and his iron grip on my shoulder. The metal door then swings open, guided by Yuichi's hand and he gestures for me to enter.

It's not as scary as I expected inside, there's lights at least, it's pretty empty though. The walls are painted hospital white, with some kind of lino on the floor. There's a table in the middle of the room, with one chair one side and two on the other, one of those is occupied by a man I've never met before.

Yuichi gestures again, this time for me to sit down in the opposite chair of the man and I do so, my fear mingling with a little curiosity. The man is dressed in a police uniform, though it looks different from the usual, there's an air of strictness and importance around him and it makes me grow more nervous still. The detective takes a seat next to him, folding his arms in his lap with a calm expression on his face. I'm suddenly reminded of those good- cop bad-cop movies for the second time today. I catch a flash of something shiny and look to my left- on the wall there's a large mirror and from my years of watching murder-mysteries on the television I already know what this is, on the other side of that pane there will be one- maybe more- people sitting watching my every move and recording it all down. The thought of this is suffocating one, it's like I'm sitting in a glass cage, with everyone's eyes on me. I feel trapped. '_You alright there kiddo?' _Asks Yami, and it relieves me a little to remember that's he's there for me.

'_Yeah, I think so.' _

'_Tell if you want to take over, okay?'_

'_Okay, thanks Yami…' _I try to put on my brave face, I have to be strong now, if I screw this up I could be branded as 'that pyro with the weird haircut' for the rest of my life!

Yuichi is the first to speak, breaking the short silence filled with shuffling, rustling and the mufflings of coughs. "Yugi," he says, addressing me by my first name, "This is Mr Ueda, Domino's chief of police. I hope you'll be respectful towards him."

Ah, that makes sense, I knew he looked important. I nod my head forward in a respectful little bow and say "It's nice to meet you sir."

"Well," He says, "The same to you too. Though I'd much rather be meeting you as Yugi Motou, a normal high school boy, rather than a prime suspect for the Domino High fire." I flush a little and dip my head, bangs rolling into my eyes. His words don't sound intentionally mean, but he's a little intimidating. He looks about forty or fifty, with black hair that's greying at the sides- he's got the feeling of a headmaster about him- The kind of headmaster who will offer you a sweet from the bowl on his desk when you're sent to his office for being bad, but will scold you all the same. "Starting fires is a very bad thing to do," He continues, and I feel as though I'm sitting in front of that desk and that sweetie bowl, "Starting a fire can get you expelled. But starting a fire that kills twelve people and burns down the entire building... Well, that's different. If you did do this and are convicted Mr Motou, you'll most likely be sent to a young offenders institute. I'm afraid it won't be for a short amount of time either."

A young offenders institute… I'd heard of those. They're full of bullies and people who'd enjoy nothing more than to use you as their punching bag. Not the best place for me, considering I must have a sticker on me that says 'Kick me' that I haven't found yet. "But," Mr Ueda adds, almost as an afterthought, "That's only if you did do it. Did you Mr Motou?"

I shake my head furiously, "No sir," I say, "I could never do anything like that."

I see him run fingers through his greying hair, "To be honest, judging from what detective Shimura has told me and from your school record, I wouldn't believe that you could. Unfortunately, evidence and witnesses don't point to this."

I sit up straight, shocked. "Witnesses?"

"Ahem," Coughs Yuichi, "Well, it's more 'witness', but he asked us not to reveal his identity."

I frown, wondering who this mystery witness could be, and why he thinks I should be banged up for something I didn't do. My mind automatically goes over all the possibilities of who it could be, but I don't really know enough to tell yet. "Could you at least tell me what he said? You know, what he said I did."

"He told us he saw you on the day of the fire on the bottom floor near where the fire actually started, with a lighter in your hand. This was during the period when you were supposed to be in maths." Yuichi says, strumming his fingers on the table in an annoying manner.

"That's a lie," I say without hesitation, knowing that I never left my seat that lesson.

Ueda leans forward, resting his elbows on the table, "Really?" He says doubtfully, "Your maths teacher tells us you left to go the toilet during the lesson. She also says that shortly after you returned the fire bell went off. It's a little bit suspicious, isn't it?"

This clinches it; someone **is **trying to frame me. I never left the room during that lesson. But… Mrs Watson… Why would she lie? It makes absolutely no sense… "I… I didn't leave the room." I say, and this time it's them who are surprised. From their wide eyes and black expressions I guess they didn't expect that. They have two people whose stories don't match and… A teacher's word is much more believable than a student's. Is Mrs Watson out to frame me or something? I knew she was a scary teacher, but still…

"You're denying that you left the room?" Asks Yuichi with dumbstruck expression still on his face.

"Yeah, I spent that lesson trying to keep Joey awake to save him from the wrath of Mrs Watson. Ask him if you like- or any of the other people in the class, they'll tell you the truth, they'll show you I'm not lying."

"Mr Motou…" Says the chief of police, "I sent a couple of officers out to talk with people from your class earlier today to recount the whole lesson and what happened after the bell went off. In every story they told us that you asked Mrs Watson to go to the bathroom, she wrote you a note and you left. Your friend Joey… He's Joey Wheeler, right? He said the same thing."

I think my ears must be deceiving me right now, there's **no way** Joey would lie like that, he's my best friend, he rescued me from the fire- there's just no way! "You're lying," I say, trying to restrain anger from my voice, "You're lying!" I feel tears pricking at my eyes.

"We're not lying Yugi," That despicable detective says, "If you really want, we'll call Mr Wheeler in and he can tell you himself." I shake my head, sadness showing clearly on my face. The one thing during this ordeal that I've always been sure of was that I was innocent, but… My whole class… Joey, all of them say I've done something that I haven't. Why would they all lie? I'm starting to doubt myself now, this really isn't good.

From the position I'm in, with my head low in my hands, I hear Mr Ueda, that candy man headmaster speak to me, disgust lacing his words like black silk. "Tell me Yugi, why did you burn the school?"

Tears trickling from eyes, I speak in my head to the only person who can get me away from here. _'Help me Yami… I don't know what to do…' _

His reply is immediate, '_Don't worry, I'm taking over.'_

Everything blacks out… And when I open my eyes that I didn't even realize I'd closed I find myself in the corridor that separates mine and Yami's Soul Rooms. I head along it, letting my hand run along the wall as I walk. Strangely enough, it feels a little bumpy in places, like it's cracked, but I feel too weary to care at the moment. I stop when I reach my door and fling it open, throwing myself forward onto the bed. Nestled in the soft blankets and pillows, I think I can hear whispering, like a television left on the next room- I realize its Yami speaking, or arguing by the sound of it. I've grown tired of this situation however, I just want to sleep and then when I wake up, realize this was just a bad dream. I yawn loudly and lye back, trying to get comfortable. There seems to be something hard under me however, so I pull it out sleepily.

It's the Rubik's cube from earlier, and it's still complete. But… Looking at this doesn't make me happy anymore, it's pointless. All these games and puzzles strewn around me… They're all useless. What does a game matter anymore when your freedom is on the line?

I toss the cube away, and by the time it hits the wall, I'm already asleep.

xxx

'_Yugi!' _

I open my eyes fast, my fuzzy mind taking in my surroundings- and I realize I'm not in the interrogation room anymore, nor my Soul Room. _'You're in a police cell Yugi, the interrogation is over,' _Yami says, answering my unspoken question.

'_Oh, right then.' _I rub my eyes tiredly and see he's right, I'm in a small room, a door with bars through the window appearing the only way out. The walls are whitewashed and the only furniture in the room is a piece of the wall that juts out with a blanket and pillow on top. _'How did it go?' _I ask, sitting down on the pathetic excuse for a bed.

'_Well…' _I'm already getting a bad feeling about this… _'I tried to convince them you didn't do it, but… They have too much evidence… What with your bag found at the crime scene, the lighter in it, the witness and your story contradicting theirs… Whoever is doing this to you have prepared well, they haven't left anything un-thought of.'_

'…_Did they say anything else important?'_

'_We didn't talk for long after you and me switched really, the detective and the other man were acting very oddly though and kept looking at me strangely every time I said something. It was all very rude.'_

A thought hits me and I suddenly feel like slapping myself… I'm such an idiot… In fact, I will slap myself. "Ouch!"

'…_Yugi, why did you just hit yourself round the face?'_

I can't believe I didn't think of it! I was so busy being pathetic I didn't even think that the detective and Mr Ueda might notice the difference between Yami and me! _'Yami… How did you act around those guys?'_

'_What do you, how did I act? I acted the same as I always do; I sat up straight and demanded to be set free. No good ever comes of being all wishy-washy around people like that.' _My unaware dark side says.

'_Oh man…' _I say irritably, _'How do you think those guys reacted when they saw me on the verge of a mental breakdown, then, saw me suddenly sitting up and demanding to be set free'_

'…_Whoops." _He says, embarrassment in his voice- which is something you don't hear a lot of with him. _'Sorry Yugi, but it's too late now.'_

'_They probably think I'm nuts…'_

'_Probably.' _Agrees Yami, not being very helpful at all.

I sigh and lay back on the uncomfortable concrete bed, watching a spider in the corner scuttle along her web, looking out for any juicy flies that might come along. That detective… Yuichi, he's like a spider in this situation- and me, I'm a fly. A spider only kills because she would starve otherwise, but never the less, the fly hates her for it. I feel like I'm trapped in his web, every moment that passes, the closer I come to being devoured whole.

I hate this.

When I look back on the past few weeks I feel like crying, but I can't cry or I'll lose, I'll just have to be strong. I can do that, I just have to hope that things will get better, that the real culprit will be caught. I can be strong, I know it!

'_Oh, Yugi!" _Yami says abruptly, _'I uh… Forgot to tell you… Yuichi said he'll see you in court next month… he's pressing charges.'_

Then again… Maybe I will cry.

* * *

Okay, so that's it for this chapter, do you guys think it sounded okay in present tense? I'd be very grateful if you could let me know, if you think it's okay like this, I'll go through the story and change it all to present. I can rewrite some of it to make it sound better too, oh yes, while I'm there, do you want me to change everyone's names to their japanese counterparts? I've been using the dub names, but since I'm setting the story in Japan rather than America it doesn't make much sense. Please please please write me a review and tell me what you all want. 


	13. A Bad State of Affairs

A/N- Thank you to Tomboy 601, Crystal Ice614, Ashka-Chan, Cheeky-Eyes, Possessed By The Anime, MagicalBrat and DarkChao1663, especially to those who gave me input on the tenses and such. :D It really helped me make a decision. I'm sticking to present tense since you all seem to like it better but keeping the dub names since Crystal Ice and Tomboy suggested I keep to them, that's probably a good idea now I think more on it. It'll be a bit odd for everyone reading if I suddenly change the characters names.

Enjoy everyone!

_Pyramid of Fire_

_Chapter 12- A Bad State of Affairs_

I didn't get any sleep last night. None. The uncomfortable bed hurt my back, the drunken shouts from the other arrests invaded my ears, and the thin blanket offered me no warmth- not that it would matter much anyway though. I couldn't stop thinking, my brain seemed to be running on overtime no matter how tired I got. I kept tossing and turning, trying out every position possible, but it was no use. So here I am now, still sitting on this godforsaken bed tired as anything. It's alright for Yami, he's not been arrested, he's in my mind snoozing, if I listen really hard I can hear him snoring, typical.

I suppose it's not his fault though, well, it sort of is, what with his little act during the interrogation… But I don't know why I'm being so hard on him, I guess I'm just grumpy from my lack of sleep, I've never been much of a morning person, but heh! I expect you all know that already.

All this waiting is starting to drive me nuts, I still don't know what's going to happen to me, I haven't spoken to anyone since the interrogation and I've no idea what's going on. I'm going to court, presumably a youth court, but from my limited knowledge of the justice system I'm pretty sure that's going to take a while to organise. So what am I supposed to do till then? Stay here? Get shipped off to a detention centre? I'm shivering now and it's nothing to do with the heating system. I just want to get out of here and go home.

Are they supposed to feed you at this place? Because I'm bloomin' starving right now, if you don't mind me saying so, surely they can't starve you here? Well, I'm tired, grumpy and now I'm hungry. What a brilliant way to start the day. Wait! Something's happening, the door's opening! Hooray! An officer steps through the open gap, I'm just about to stand up and demand my freedom (Yeah, right) when I notice the tray in the officer's hands. My stomach rumbles in reply- it's breakfast. The officer is a sleepy looking woman with dishevelled clothes and buttons done up in the wrong places. She sets the tray down on the hard bed, yawning and moves to the door again, obviously, and rudely not intended to speak to me.

"What's going to happen to me?" I blurt out abruptly as she opens the door, unable to keep quiet any longer.

She looks over to me and smiles a little smile, "You'll have to wait and see," she says, "You'll find out soon enough. I don't blame you for wanting to get out of here though, Mrs Corona's on the rampage. She's been itching to get in there all morning, wanting to bring my baton." The woman laughs, though I personally don't find the idea of being beaten black and blue by some strange woman. Rather, I wonder who this baton-wielding madwoman is.

"Mrs Corona?" I ask.

The policewoman looks surprised, "You don't know? Don't you remember the… Oh well, never mind. Just don't tell her that or she'll hit you even more." With that confusing comment she walks out, leaving me to my thoughts. I look down at the tray on the bed; there are two slices of toast and a glass of orange juice. My stomach rumbles again and I sigh, "If you insist."

I spent the rest of the morning lying on my bed making patterns and pictures out of the little cracks on the wall, having nothing better to do. When I grew bored of this I sat up and created a long elaborate daydream where I win the Duel Monsters championship, my prize being a kiss from Tea, who strangely enough was wearing a bunny girl outfit. I love my imagination. This fantasy was somewhat spoiled by the rogue thought that if I was sent to a young offenders institute I wouldn't be competing in any Duel Monsters championships however.

When lunch time comes around I'm once again visited by the woman with the tray. She enters, closing the door behind her with a soft click and gathers up all my things from breakfast, tucking the empty tray and cup and plate haphazardly under her arm, and putting down the new tray, before readjusting all the old breakfast things from under her arm. It kind of makes me wonder why she just didn't do it all the other way round. She still looks half asleep. I watch as she does all this, bored witless and practically begging to be told of any news.

"Someone is coming to talk to you in an hour or so," she says, seeing my expression.

"Is my Grandpa coming to visit today?" I ask hopefully with a polite smile.

She shakes her head, "No idea I'm afraid,"

"Oh…Okay," I say, a little sadly. My smile wilts to the ground.

"Sorry," she says, and I notice a little look of pity on her face, something I haven't seen much of these past few days, amidst the sea of hateful and murderously angry looks I've been getting lately.

"Bye," I say as she slips back out the door. Then I look to my food- and my stomach does the talking.

I wonder who it is whose coming to see me later? Maybe Mr Ueda? Or the detective? It could just be a regular officer I guess, they don't need the chief of police to do everything, and if he's the chief I would have thought he'd be busy a lot of the time. So long as it isn't the woman that officer was talking about, the one who wanted her baton. Mrs Corona… I think I might have heard that name before- I just wish I could remember where!

…This is so dull.

After a triple dose of boredom with boredom on top and with a side order of boredom something finally happens. The door opens again. I look up eagerly, expecting Yuichi or some other officer's face will swim into view- but this person isn't Yuichi, nor any other officer. I know this because they're not wearing a police uniform; it's a man wearing a white coat. A white coat. A **white** coat. Excuse me while I burst into tears here… This can't be happening. They've send a psychiatrist, a psychologist, whatever the heck they're called to come talk to me! I'm not crazy!

"Good afternoon Mr Motou," the man says to me, "I'm Dr Melson. Don't worry; I'm just here for a little chat."

"I'm not mad." I say bluntly.

"Of course you're not. Do you mind if I sit down?" I shake my head stiffly and shuffle over, giving him room on the bed next to me. "So Mr Motou… would it bother you if I called you Yugi?" Once again I reply with a shake of the head, feeling uncomfortable. "They tell me you set fire to your school Yugi, do you know why you did that?"

"I didn't!" I say, my voice on the verge of a shout. I can't keep quiet any longer.

"Okay then," says Dr Melson, whipping out a notepad and jotting something down quickly. I'm a bit surprised; I didn't expect him to accept that so easily, I was prepared for a long argument on that one. "Do you like fire Yugi?"

My irritation swarms back, turns out he hasn't accepted it, he's just trying to sound reasonable and fair. Pff. "I don't know," I say, "I don't especially like it- it's just fire."

"I see," says the twat sitting next to me, writing his silly notes again, "I believe you live with your grandfather Yugi, what about your parents?"

"I don't have a Dad," I say coldly, this is an uncomfortable subject for me, "and my Mum lives in another town for her work, I don't see her very often."

"What do you mean by not having a Dad Yugi?"

"I thought you people have a file on me, don't you know this already? He died when I was little." I say exasperatedly.

"How do you feel about that Yugi?"

"Will you stop calling me that!?" I snap, I wish he's stop saying my name so much, 'Yugi this' 'Yugi that' 'how do you feel about so and so Yugi?' It's driving me nuts!

"You don't like being called by your name?" He asks, he's completely missing the point here; I really don't like this type of people. They're so nosy, asking about everything and trying to make you think they understand you and that they care about you, but all they want really is to put a giant stamp on your head that says _Insane._

"No, not that. You just say it _every _time, and the way you say it too. It sounds like… like…" Like you're talking to a five year old. But I don't complete the sentence. He seems to have understood what I meant however, or is pretending too.

"My apologies," he says, insincerely I'm sure. "Do you ever feel depressed?" Yup, he didn't mean it; he's back using that voice again as though he's talking a small child, either that or someone very stupid. Argh! He makes me so angry!

"Will you just leave me alone?" I ask him, goaded beyond endurance; I feel like storming out of the room, unfortunately, the door's locked.

"You know Yugi- Mr Motou- according to your school records you're supposed to be a quiet shy and hardworking young man with a history of being the victim in bullying. Are you sure you're not someone else?"

"I'm very sure," I say, dipping my voice into a little of my dislike, "But I'm not in the best mood at the moment, being arrested for something you didn't do kind of does that to you, y'know?" I use my most un-yugi-ish glare on him- I must say, I'm quite proud of myself. I'm getting quite good at this standing up for myself business. "Now tell me really, I know you're not here for a 'little chat' so why are you here?"

Dr Melson's smile and pleasant demeanour drops away, taking with it that hateful sugary voice. "I've been told by Police Chief Ueda that after you lit the fire on the ground floor you returned to your maths room above, and consequently had to be rescued by your friend. It appears you didn't want to get out- you almost died. Both Mr Ueda and Mr Shimura agree that you must be somewhat mentally imbalanced and-"

"I never went from the ground floor to the third—because I wasn't down there, I never started the fire, I've told you that already!" I interrupt angrily.

"-Furthermore, you've been witnessed on more than one occasion talking to yourself, quite merrily, I've been informed." He finished, completely ignoring my statement. He looks at me in a way that asks, 'What do you say to that, huh?' "Mr Motou, do you hear voices?" He asks snidely. I'm openly glaring at him now, I've never met someone so obnoxious in my life- Well, I do hear voices, but I sure as hell aren't gonna tell him about Yami!

"I don't." I say, "And I'm not… Mentally imbalanced either. I'm not crazy, or suicidal, or whatever it is you think."

Dr Melson frowns deeply at me, obviously annoyed he couldn't get me to tell him some great sob story about how my parents might have abandoned me and tossed me into the streets leaving me vengeful and suicidal and very very traumatised, and how to vent my anguish I set the school ablaze, planning to kill myself and everyone around me. These types of people make me sick. Can't he go do something constructive, like clean a few bins? I must be such a disappointment to him.

"Well, thank you Mr Motou," he says sourly, closing his notebook with a snap, "goodbye." He stands up primly, unlocks the door and walks out, letting it slam noisily behind him. I hear the clicking noise of the locking mechanism as once again I'm trapped.

"Good riddance," I whisper.

That man was such a pain, I really am glad he's gone, I think I did a good job at standing up to him though. When did I get so tough? I think Yami must still be asleep- the lazy bum. '_Yami,'_ I call, _'Yami!' _...No answer, I guess he really is still sleeping. To be honest I haven't heard much from him for ages, he used to be so noisy, always chattering to me- Everything's gone all topsy-turvy now I guess.

The hours pass incredibly slowly now, and Yami's no fun, still snoozing, and I'm too nice too wake him up. Still, I might if he doesn't soon, today's been such a drag, so boring, hardly anything has happened. I hope something does soon. I lay back on my bed, hearing the faint tap of shoes outside my cell. The shoes get louder, clacking noisily towards my door; I wonder who it could be? The tapping is fast, like the person is hurrying, or in a rush. Sounds like high-heels as well; do I know anyone who wears high-heels? I'm sure they're not normal attire for policemen, Tea wears them sometimes, could it be her? Or my Mum? I stand up to greet whoever it is.

The door bursts open and a furious looking woman walks inside, the door smashing against the wall and bouncing back from the impact. I wince. It's the green-eyed secretary, the one who was giving the evils yesterday when I came in. She holding a ring of keys in her hand which explains how she got in, I thought the door was locked. Maybe… Maybe this is the 'Mrs Corona' the officer was talking about earlier… Judging from what she said, I think I should be scared.

"So," she snarls at me, "You're the one who burnt down the school, aren't you?"

"No," I say, more than a little intimidated. What does this woman want from me? "I was framed."

"I've worked here for five years now, you little freak," she hisses, "how many times do you think I've hard that one? I've seen all the evidence- it's concrete! Don't think you'll weasel your way out of this, you'll get your just desserts, I'll make sure of it."

I'm… At a loss of what to say. I could tell her I didn't' do it again, but something tells me that really isn't going to help me here… I feel like backing away but I draw up my courage and hold me ground, if I show any weakness to this person she'll trample me to the ground. I still wonder why she's so angry, this isn't the anger of an onlooker who feels sympathy for those lost and wants the culprit caught. No… It couldn't be… Maybe someone she knew died that day, it's possible. The woman- who I'm now positive is Mrs Corona- walks up to me and grabs my shoulders- I try to pull away but she holds on tight digging her nails painfully into my skin. She locks me in the eye, looking ready to explode. "Thanks to you she's gone! Thanks to you I'll never see her again! Thanks to you she's **dead!**" she exclaims, shaking me in a rage. My suspicions are confirmed, dread fills me stomach. "If it wasn't for you she'd still be here- My precious daughter!"

"Oh no…" I whisper, "You mean…Her…" My eyes dropped to the floor, I'd almost forgotten about it. My heart feels painfully sad; I distantly notice Mrs Corona seems to have stopped shaking me.

"What?" She asks.

In my mind a girl swims into vision dressed in the pink and blue uniform of our school, brown hair in loose bunches, fear sparkling in her green eyes. "…Did your daughter… have eyes like you?" A fire blazes around her, I call out—but it's too late.

"Yes…Why do you ask?" A rumble, a crash, the roof collapsing, engulfing her.

x

The table is their usual one, big enough for five to sit. Only four places are set. At this time of day, after lunch, before dinner Burger World is almost empty. The man behind the counter leans heavily on it looking ready to fall into a deep slumber, an old man sits with a newspaper, an empty coffee cup on the table.

The group of youths fiddle with the spoons in their sundaes, inside, they know something is missing.

"What do you think Yugi's up to 'bout now?" Joey asks his friends, his sundae amazingly uneaten.

Tea shrugs her shoulders half-heartedly, "Who knows," she says in a defeated voice, "I just…I still can't believe they actually arrested him. Out of all the people in the school, they arrest Yugi. He's probably one of the people _least_ likely to do it."

"He's still at the station," says Tristen, "I rang up this morning, asked if we visit."

"What did they say?" asks Bakura curiously.

"They said no. They said they wanted to send someone to speak to him again today, the poor guy. I wonder how he's standing up to it all…"

"He's got Yami," Tea says, her voice strangely high pitched as she pronounces the name. "He'll be alright."

Joey bites his lip, still internally struggling whether to tell the others something important. He looks down at his sundae, fingers tapping a beat on the table, at last, he looks up. "I 'spose I better mention this to you guys," he sighs out, "Yesterday morning the police came round my house." Everyone's eyes flick to him, seeking out explanations. "They wanted ta ask 'bout the day of the fire," he explains to his friends, "…And dey was asking a lot about what Yug' was doing. I was half asleep that day, but I do remember Yug' askin' if he could go to da bathroom. I remember 'cuz the beast- dat's Mrs Watson- was half inclined ta say no. Yug' said it was urgent though, so she let him go in da end. Da police made a big deal outta this, asking if I was sure that was what happened and all dat. I guess they think that's when he mighta lit the fire."

Tristen snorts, "Right," he says sarcastically, "Because we all **know** Yugi's an evil pyromaniac, don't we?"

Bakura chuckles but then falls into a much more solemn mood, noticing the expressions of his friends around him, "Well, I just hope the real culprit gets caught soon—so Yugi doesn't take the blame."

Tea sits thoughtfully, her finger placed ostentatiously on her chin, "I never really thought about it before," she begins, "but why did Yugi get stuck in the building once the bell went off? I know he's got short legs but I didn't think he was that slow. I can't believe I didn't ask about it before…"

The thought grows on the others and they begin to wonder as well. Tristen speaks slowly, "If he was in the bathroom… He would have heard the bell." He puts his head in his hands, leaning into them, "Ugh, there's something we're missing here."

"…Yugi didn't come back to your classroom after did he?" Bakura asks Joey.

"Nope, the bell went off a lil while after Yug' left, so we had to evacuate and I didn't see Yug' again till I went in ta find him afterwards. I can see why it seems suspicious to the police… But really, I'm sure 'dere are other people outta class at da time."

"Even if he had done it," Bakura adds, "Aren't people about to commit serious crimes like that usually a bit edgy and jumpy beforehand? I'm not in Yugi's maths class but I saw him earlier on- he was fine."

"He seemed okay in maths as well, though… Now I think on it…" Joey pauses, silence stretching between the four people as he scrunches his forehead, digging into his memories, "When he asked to go to the bathroom, he seemed… sorta' _dazed_."

x

Mrs Corona is looking at me with her hard green eyes demanding an explanation and I… I honestly don't know how say it. I saw your daughter die? I don't think that would put her in any better mood… But she deserves to know, they never found Mina Corona's body in the end. This woman probably has no idea what happened to her.

"I…" How do I tell her this? "I saw her in the fire," I settle with, Mrs Corona's anger fading away a little from in her in determination to know the fate of her daughter. "She was in the science rooms, frozen, I guess with shock. I called out to her… But

then-" I stop, how the heck am I supposed to say it? I take a deep breath, "the part of the roof above her collapsed."

Mrs Corona makes a sort of strangled cry, burying her face in her hands. Should I try and say something comforting to her? Her shoulders are shaking and she's choking back small sobs, I reach out towards her, meaning to pat her arm in a sort of 'there, there' kind of way. She swats it back, glaring towards me.

"Don't. Touch me." She says, fury in every syllable, "After what you've done to me, don't you dare touch me." The next few seconds are a blur, my mind recognizes a hand swinging towards my face, then **SMACK!** My hand instinctively rises to my stinging cheek. She's slapped me.

"I hate you so much," she says with a tremble, "If you knew how much pain you've caused me…" **SMACK!** She hits me again on the other cheek; I don't do anything to stop her. This doesn't look like it's going to end here however, her hand's balling into a fist, I raise my arms to cover my face.

"Mrs Corona," A voice calls out firmly, I lower my arms, it's the policewoman who brought my food before. She's standing at the door, that permanent sleepy look still on her face. "Mrs Corona," she repeats, "please stop beating up our suspect."

Mrs Corona throws me a dirty look and storms out the door, her high heels tapping away even faster than they had came. I look in relief to the policewoman by the door, "Thanks," I say, she nods in reply.

"I've come to collect you, your Grandfather is here to see you." Hope lifts my heart a little; I didn't think I'd be allowed to see him today. The officer escorts me out the door and I must say, it's a relief to be out of the room. We walk down the corridor, I'm still feeling a little rattled from my encounter with that woman, I never knew Mums could be so scary! Still, I don't blame her… She has just lost her daughter after all; I'd probably do the same. I only wish she's pick the right person to screw at. I look at the woman striding along next to me, I decide to attempt at conversation. "Um, that lady, Mrs Corona, she's the secretary here right?"

"That's right," replies the officer, "she stole the keys for your room. Determined, huh?"

"Uh, yeah. It kinda hurt though." I rub at my cheek again. We're almost at the end of the corridor now.

The officer looks to me, the sleepy look gone from her face, "Well, you people get what you deserve I say." And with that she opens the door in front of us and walks away back down the corridor.

Is there any kindness left in this world for me?

My grandfather is inside the room looking tired and sitting with Mr Ueda and another officer whose shuffling paperwork. It's not the interrogation room again, thank goodness, but a plain ordinary one with several seats. "Come in Yugi," says Mr Ueda, gesturing for me to enter, "We've decided what we're going to do with you." He makes it sound like I'm some sort of dog with a disease no one quite knows what to do with.

I walk inside, aware of all their eyes on me and take a seat next to Grandpa. "Hi," I say hesitantly.

He gives me a tired smile, "Hello Yugi,"

The chief of police clears his throat, "I've been with many of the senior officers for most of the day- trying to figure out what to do with you until the court case. We've come to a bit of an agreement now though. You'll be allowed to go home under our grandfather's care," Yeah! "But, there will be rules. Quite a few of them actually. First of all you'll only be allowed to leave your house under a responsible adult's care. Secondly, even at home you must be supervised at all times, and lastly, all dangerous items, including knives and matches must be taken away from your reach. There'll be an inspection in a few days time. We decided on these rules with input from Dr Melson, he thought them adequate."

God… So that's why they needed him to talk to me, if I had known this I would have been a bit more sweet with him, it's typical the one time I manage to stand up for myself and be tough nothing good comes of it. Maybe I really should have told him that sob story after all.

"Wait a moment," I say, frowning, "I understand the first two, and the matches, but why knives? Do you think I'm going to become a murderer or something as well?"

Mr Ueda coughs ominously, looking over to my Grandpa instead of me, "Actually, no. It's because, well, it's in case you do something to yourself.

No. Fricking. Way. They think I'm suicidal! I feel like just shouting out 'I didn't do it!' I just… I just can't believe these guys. "Does that mean I can go home though?" I ask, trying to stay on the- diminishing- bright side of things.

"Once your grandfather signs some forms for us. You'll have to come to the station several times before the court case most likely however, the investigation is still ongoing. We'll need to take fingerprints sometime soon too." Mr Ueda says.

"Aha!" I exclaim abruptly, my mind clicking into place, Grandpa looks a little bit startled, "Then you can test them against the ones on the lighter and see it wasn't me! Because trust me, I've never ever seen that thing before in my life."

Mr Ueda looks at me strangely, I guess wondering how I can be so confident, "Yes well, we'll have to do the test first." Despite this rather negative reply I feel relieved by this thought- the fingerprints will definitely show the lighter was planted in my bag, and hopefully, the real culprit.

Mr 'chief of police' has Grandpa sign the forms next, the other officer in the room handing them to him. Both Grandpa and Mr Ueda lean hunch-back over the table, Mr Ueda showing him where to sign. My eyes wander around the room impatiently, taking in details as I wait for them to finish. My vision is drawn to a vase on the other side of the room. It's only a plastic one, the kind that might have the 200 yen**¹** sticker still on the bottom. Flowers sit in it; I don't know what they're called, me not being a master of plants. They're rather nice though, there's about three or four of them in the vase, with long stems and most of the leaves trimmed off. The petals are an unusual colour scheme, a pale yellow colour towards the middle fading into a vibrant orange at the tips, the edges flecked with red. The few leaves left are delicate and wispy, like moth or butterfly wings. The clock ticks lightly overhead, beating out its steady rhythm as I sit waiting Grandpa and Mr Ueda to finish.

"Right, thank you, that's the last one." Says Mr Ueda gathering up the pieces of paper Grandpa's signed and handing them to the other officer who leaves the room with them. I look away from the tacky vase and unusual flowers and see Mr Ueda watching me, "You're free to go now—for the moment at least." He says cheerfully, the darker undertones to his words very much present.

Grandpa stands from where he was leaning on the table and stretches, his back making an ominous crack as he does so, "Ouch!" he cries, rubbing it with a wince, "Back isn't what it used to be any more," he complains. I feel like I should make some kind of consoling comment to him, or just any comment at all to lighten the mood, but all of a sudden I'm lost for words. Does Grandpa think I'm a pyromaniac too? Even though I didn't start the fire I'm still feeling a bit worried, what if Grandpa starts to treat me differently as well? I'm afraid he's going to think I did it and be mad at me, because for all he knows I could very well have. I suppose I just have to have hope that he has more faith in me than that.

"Well my boy, time to get back to the game shop," says Grandpa, and I'm relieved hear that it's not disgust in his voice, only a little tiredness I can tell he's trying to mask with a cheerful tone, which I'm grateful for. It's nice to know someone still believes in me, unlike Joey and his 'I went to the bathroom in maths' story. I'm going to have words with him about that and see if I can figure out what the ruddy hell is going on.

I get up from my seat and head to the door with grandpa, looking back to Mr Ueda and wondering if I should say anything to him. It seems stupid to say 'bye' to the man who arrested you and is most likely going to put you in a youth prison for years, but all the same I wonder if I should to be polite. He looks back to me from the clock he was glancing at and sees me staring, "I'll escort you out," he says- well, that's the end of that internal argument. He heads over to us but stops sharply part of the way there, "Wait," he says, walking back to the table where several lone pieces of paper still lay, "I completely forgot, you have to sign something as well Yugi," he sifts through the papers and I repress a groan, I was hoping to get out of this place son, it's suffocating. He passes me a sheet with small printed type and a ball-point pen. "It basically says you agree not to get away from the court case and you'll attend with your guardian. It's to make sure you don't try to escape from the country, anything like that. It's an equivalent to bail, basically. If you did try to escape, consequences would be… unpleasant." Once again there's that amiable voice complete with a darker message. I take the form and pen from him wordlessly and quickly scan through the text making sure what he said is true, I just want to be careful is all, you can never be too sure you see…

Satisfied what he said matches with the form I press it against the wall, leaning forward with my left leg and pressing all my weight onto it. I sign my name: _YMotou, _I don't add a letter for my middle name because I don't have one, my parents kind of forgot about giving me one I guess. I hand the form back to the bossman and he puts it on top of the tiny pile in his other hand.

"Right then, let's go," he walks with us back through reception (which I am _very_ glad to see is currently empty) and outside through the doors, holding it open for Grandpa but either forgetting or ignoring me. I presume it is the latter. "Goodbye then Yugi, and you too Mr Motou. I'll see you in the court case in a few weeks time; we'll call you to inform you of the actual date soon."

"Great, thanks." I say, restraining myself from adding a sarcastic tone to my reply, this is the chief of Domino's police, all in all not someone you'd usually mess around with. The fact that I seem to be meeting so much with him shows just how serious this all is. Me and Grandpa walk down the steps from the station and I admire the day, having being trapped inside for hours I hadn't even known what the weather was like! It's a sunny kind of day; not like the roaster we had on the day of the fire, but certainly warm enough, with a gentle stirring of wind that prevents one from getting too warm.

"Um, so Grandpa, what have you been doing today?" I still find it a little difficult to speak to him, hopefully a little pointless banter will loosen things up a bit between us.

"Oh, just the norm, running the shop, having dinner and all that." He says, and I wonder by that vague answer if he spent most of the day with his 'secret stash'. The ends of my mouth turn upwards at the thought of this. He thinks I don't know about it, but I came home from school early one and caught him watching something called 'Sailor Moon' dressed as one of the girls on screen, complete with a blonde wig tied in pigtails high on his head, a sight a little too disturbing even for me. I had quickly backed out of the room from the otaku and pretended I didn't see anything; things might have got a bit… awkward if I had let him know I saw him. Especially if he asked me to join his little cosplay –or is that crossplay- club, ugh…

I jerk back to reality and I realize he's waiting for a reply to something, "Oh, um yeah. That's… uh nice." I say lamely, hoping that makes sense as a reply to whatever it was he just said. Obviously not though, since he's watching me worriedly as we walk down the street now.

"You seem kind of distracted Yugi," he says, "are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking is all." …I get the feeling he doesn't believe me in the slightest.

We head back to the Turtle game shop down the main road, cars rushing past us at top speeds, cherry trees border the road, petals whipped off by the wind created by the cars cascading over us.

A figure steps forward through the petals, they gather around her, clustering and fluttering like moths around a light. I recognize her instantly; my heart begins to pound wildly.

It's the girl who died in the fire- Mina Corona. She walks towards me and I stop dead, petals fluttering on past. She looks exactly like she did that day, my mind heightened by panic remembered every detail, her brown hair is still in bunches, her school uniform blowing in the breeze that I can't even feel any more because I've gone numb, those green eyes are staring deep. I'm aware of Grandpa shaking me, saying something to me but I can't tear my eyes away from her, I can't see him because I've gone blind, his words don't reach me because I've gone deaf.

I shake my head to clear my mind, blink my eyes to make her disappear, but she's still stands there. She's supposed to be dead! But here she is, not a scratch on her, is this a ghost? At last Grandpa's words catch up with me, "Yugi, what's the matter? Yugi, Yugi!" He's still shaking me, and I can feel myself shaking as well. I turn to him.

"Look!" I say, pointing to Mina, "It's the girl who died when the school burnt down, I saw the roof fall on top of her that day!"

Grandpa looks ahead, right to where she's standing, "Where?" he asks, squinting for something far in front of us.

"Right there!" I say exasperatedly, pointing again to just in front of us.

He shakes his head, "I still don't see anyone Yugi," he looks really concerned now, and I'm sure I look incredibly confused. Why can't he see her? Grandpa puts a hand on my shoulder and leads me forward, I give no resistance. "Come on now," he says.

Mina's eyes follow me as I walk towards her. A thought crosses my mind, have I gone mad? But as I pass her, shoes clacking on the pavement, I reach my hand out through the swirl of petals towards her and it meets soft flesh. It's still warm.

* * *

**¹ ****-- **200 yen is equivalent to 82 pence, or 1.62 dollars if you prefer.

Hope you all enjoyed this latest twist, things are really going to start heating up now the court case is in sight. A lot of people are coming up with ideas for who the culprit might be now, let me know if you think you know who it is, it's possible from reading these 12 chapters to find out who it is, but only just. I'm not saying anymore. ;)


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